Nigel Payne (born March 1960) is the former Group Chief Executive and current Executive Director of Sportingbet Plc, which operates a network of bookmaking websites, as well as the Paradise Poker online poker room.A native of the United Kingdom, Payne has long been an outspoken critic of bans on online gambling; he appears regularly on news programs such as 60 Minutes. He is an ardent supporter of legalisation and regulation of the industry.In his early life he was an expert table tennis player, once ranked 5 in the UK.