SL Capital Exchange have announced that are suspending activity until further notice as they await approval on their application to be an approved skill gaming operator. The announcement states :
On July 16, 2014, I filled out the first form for the Skill Gaming Application for Capital Exchange Stock Market Simulation Game. From that point until today, there have been numerous correspondences between me, my law firm, and Linden Lab. As of today we still do not have an official determination, positive or negative, on our application.
I was hoping that because much of the delay has been on the part of Linden Lab, that we would be allowed to operate past the November 1, 2014 deadline set forth in a recent post by Linden Lab. Unfortunately I was informed by Rowan Linden that we cannot. So therefore effective immediately, I am suspending all trading at Capital Exchange until our application is approved or denied by Linden Lab.
I do not know how long this might take, because honestly I thought this would all have been resolved already, however I hear there is a backlog of applications and Linden Lab needs the proper time to review them all thoroughly. So we need to be patient, and wait for Linden Lab’s counsel to do their job.
I’m a bit bemused as to just why CapEx are having such difficulty in getting a reply on approval, I’m also a bit bemused as to why they are seeking approval in the first place but more on that later. CapEx, for those who don’t know, is a fictional stock exchange where Second Life business owners list their business on the stock exchange and the value of shares rise and fall. I’ve engaged with this in the distant past by buying and selling shares and have never had bad experiences with it. I would imagine there have been issues when a Second Life business ceases to be, but I haven’t fell victim to that.
The suspension is due to the Skill Gaming Policy from Linden Lab which had a deadline of November 1st for people to cease activities even if they had an application pending, as explained in a blog post from Linden Lab at the end of September :
Beginning November 1, 2014, the enforcement of our Policy will apply to all Residents, including those with pending Skill Gaming applications that await Linden Lab review and approval. As of that date, any objects or regions found in violation of our Policy will be taken down.We strongly encourage all applicants to submit any outstanding materials for our review as soon as possible so that their applications may be processed before the deadline.
Whereas I have sympathies for both Linden Lab and applicants during this process, as new issues arise during the process, it seems a bit off that a venture that applied as far back as July are still left dangling in the wind in November.