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Federal Funds Rate

We like to think that when we deposit a dollar at the bank, it goes into a big vault and we can pull out that same dollar at any time. But that¿s not how the U.S. banking system works. Banks take that money and invest it to make money themselves, so cash gets spread around. This, naturally, leads to a big risk: What happens if those investments go sour? Well, you¿d be out of luck. You can¿t get your dollar back.

The Federal Reserve doesn¿t like that scenario, so it prohibits banks from putting all the cash it has on deposit on the line. In fact, the Fed forces banks to keep a portion of their assets at the Federal Reserve itself, to make sure that some of your assets won¿t get squandered if the bank¿s bets go south. These are called ¿reserves,¿ (hence, Federal Reserve. Got it? Good), and usually amount to 10% of the total cash kept in checking accounts.

These reserves are never exactly 10%, and banks like to keep a little extra in reserve ¿ not, as you might think, to make you more comfortable that they¿re in good financial shape, but rather so they can take that excess and lend it to other banks and make money off it. (They¿re banks, they can¿t help themselves.) The rate at which they make these loans is called the Federal Funds rate, which is set by the Federal Reserve¿s Federal Open Market Committee.

When you hear people chattering about how the Fed cut or hiked interest rates, this is what they¿re talking about: the interest rate banks can charge for lending money from their reserves. This begs the question: If these are essentially loans between banks, why is the Fed Funds rate so important for the rest of the economy?

Well, simply put, because loans make the financial world go round. Bank A lends Bank B $10,000 at a Fed Funds rate of 5%. Bank B then lends out $10,000 to a small business at 7%. The small business then takes that money and expands the business and hires new workers. Now someone is employed, Bank B has made interest off the loan, and Bank A is the richer for making it all happen. It¿s perhaps overly simplistic, but you get the idea. When you want the economy to thrive, you make lending cheaper.

Of course, sometimes you don¿t want the economy to thrive. In fact, you might want it to cool down, mostly to avoid money flooding the system and causing inflation. In that case, the Fed raises interest rates, making it difficult to lend or borrow.

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Century Casino & Hotel Edmonton, Canada, Announces First Annual Celebrity Poker Tournament

 
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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., June 9, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ ----Century Casinos, Inc. (Nasdaq: CNTY; Vienna Stock Exchange) announced today that its Century Casino & Hotel in Edmonton, Canada, will host the 1st Annual Celebrity Poker Tournament in support of the MS (Multiple Sclerosis) Society of Alberta on June 14, 2008.

This celebrity poker tournament will feature stars of Canada's most popular TV show "Corner Gas", namely Tara Spencer-Nairn and Lorne Cardinal. Other confirmed celebrities include former Edmonton Eskimo Football Great Singor Mobley, as well as Playboy model and WWE Diva Rochelle Loewen.

Local media will also be represented including CISN morning man Sean Burke along with local poker legend Sandra Sperounes from the Edmonton Journal, and Gene Principe from Sportsnet, the commentator of the world-famous hockey team, the Edmonton Oilers.

The tournament is limited to 77 entries and commences at 2:00 p.m. MDT on June 14 in Century Casino's new 24 hour poker room. On the day of the tournament, a silent auction will be held from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. MDT to raise funds in support of the MS Society. In addition, a portion of the registration fees will be donated directly to the MS Society.

For further information about the tournament and registration, please visit our website under http://www.cnty.com/casinos/edmonton/casino/promotions-events/.

About Century Casinos, Inc.:

Century Casinos, Inc. is an international casino entertainment company that owns and operates the Womacks Casino and Hotel in Cripple Creek, Colorado, the Century Casino & Hotel in Central City, Colorado, the Century Casino & Hotel in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and the Century Casino Millennium in the Marriott Hotel in Prague, Czech Republic. The Company also operates casinos aboard the Silver Cloud, The World of ResidenSea, and the vessels of Oceania Cruises. Through its subsidiary Century Casinos Africa (Pty) Limited, it owns and operates The Caledon Hotel, Spa & Casino near Cape Town, South Africa, as well as 60% of, and provides technical casino services to, Century Casino Newcastle, in Newcastle, South Africa. Furthermore, the Company's Austrian subsidiary, Century Casinos Europe GmbH, holds a 33.3% ownership interest in Casinos Poland Ltd, the owner and operator of seven full casinos and one slot casino in Poland. The Company continues to pursue other international projects in various stages of development.

For more information about Century Casinos, visit our website at http://www.centurycasinos.com. Century Casinos' common stock trades on The NASDAQ Capital Market(R) and the Vienna Stock Exchange under the symbol CNTY.

This release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of the management of Century Casinos based on information currently available to management. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements include, among others, the risks described in the section entitled "Risk Factors" under Item 1A in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 16, 2007. Century Casinos disclaims any obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement that may be made from time to time by it or on its behalf.

SOURCE Century Casinos, Inc.

http://www.centurycasinos.com
   
Copyright (C) 2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
 
 

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