Bookmaker Paddy Power have seen a rise in profits, thanks to online gaming.

The company said profits in the first six months of the year rose 12% to €77 million.

The total amount of bets staked with Paddy Power also rose 3% to €3 billion.

Paddy Power said most of the profits were generated inline and in Australia, where it has expanded in the last couple of years.

“Revenues increased in every division, with very strong growth of 29% in online, which delivered over three quarters of group profit. The excellent performance of our Australian business was a particular highlight,” its chief executive Patrick Kennedy said.

In Ireland, the amount of bets placed was up, but the company said profits fell 16%. That’s because bookies were hit by a string of winning favourites and a record number of Irish winners at the Cheltenham festival that cost them money.

Shares in Paddy Power, though, fell this morning on the Irish stock market by as much as 5%. That’s because of higher losses from launching online betting in Italy and some concerns that sporting results in recent weeks have gone against bookmakers.