A NEW business set up on a shoestring in York is betting on its fortunes rolling in.

Stakesoft, which develops betting software from its base at the University of York, has seen an explosion of interest since it launched its first product, JetBet, only months ago.

The business, set up by Mert Ozbek, an accountant working until September for North Yorkshire County Council’s waste management team, developed JetBet, a software tool to speed up betting for users of betting marketplace Betfair last year.

Two months after launching the software, available free with a chance to upgrade to a premium version with no restrictions, the business is already in the black, with JetBet being well-received all over the world.

Interest started in an internet forum and swept the globe, with JetBet being talked about in forums in Spain and Portugal.

The company has just translated the software into 16 different languages, including Chinese, Bulgarian, Greek, Russian and Turkish.

Mert said JetBet had provided the “shop window” for what they can do, and they have since been contacted by customers with ideas of their own, and is developing an individual piece of software through an intermediary, for Betfair’s second biggest VIP client, whose identity remains a secret even to them.

Mert said they were growing the business organically, with no debt and very low overheads.

He said: “Because the betting industry is so rich, we’re a tiny fish and not even on the radar to so many people.

“We would like to continually develop JetBet so it becomes the de-facto programme for people using Betfair.

“Many people don’t realise there is software out there that can do things easier and more flexibly, so there’s a big market to go at once we get the word out there.”

The company has since launched further products – Tipstersuite – for professional tipsters which allows their selections to be automatically uploaded to the internet and then downloaded to clients’ computers to get bets placed.

The business is also working on projects for individual customers, one of which has led to the development of Steamerbot, automated software which tracks the biggest movements of odds prices before a race, also known as “Steamers and Drifters”, and automatically places bets where it finds the greatest movements.

The business has further ideas it hopes to develop, such as tracking the betting movements during tennis matches, which Mert believes can be made into a system they can sell.

He said: “I don’t gamble. The accountant in me likes the systematic nature of what we can do with it, like the patterns within it, but I don’t do it recreationally.”

How to build a business on a shoestring budget

• Accommodation – York’s universities offer cheap start-up accommodation in incubators such as the Ron Cooke Hub and the Phoenix Centre. Stakesoft started at the Ron Cooke Hub, with the first three months free.

• Networks – incubators provide access to like-minded companies which often end up helping each other out. Mert traded his accountancy skills for some search engine optimisation. Personal networks can also be exploited. Mert enlisted a friend, who is a trademark lawyer, to help him protect their name, when they realised a large company also had plans for the name JetBet. Another friend living in Australia is helping the company establish contacts in this market, leading to talks with an Australian software company, which now wants to license JetBet.

• DIY – Mert has taught himself PhotoShop to create his own graphics and set up the company website himself using user-friendly software from Wordpress, and using a cheap monthly hosting service, has a hosted email system, meaning he and his business partner in Cumbria can access emails remotely.

• Fiverr.com – For the things he can’t do himself, or for things that are too cheap to refuse, Mert used fiverr.com, a website of services offered for $5, such as creating and producing video advertisements.

• Skype – has provided the company with a cheap way to communicate, not just with customers but with remote colleagues.

• Using the university – As well as partnering with a lecturer from the University of York’s systems department, Mert intends to take on an intern to help process large amounts of data to enable them to develop new products.

• Partnerships – The business developed Steamerbot with investment from a client. Once the software was launched, the customer received ten per cent of sales, making back most of his investment in two weeks.