Finance Archives

October 11, 2022

Metric Gaming to launch B2C sportsbook Bhet

Sports betting supplier Metric Gaming has announced it will launch a B2C sportsbook offering through its wholly owned Bhet subsidiary.

The sportsbook will build on Metric’s previously announced partnership with Lacerta Sports. Lacerta was founded by a team from London-based data betting syndicate and consultancy Starlizard, whose data solution will power the sportsbook’s pricing, risk management and player profiling.

“The pricing will be among the most player-friendly in the industry, and the scope and availability of live in-game wagering will be significantly more innovative and engaging than competitor brands,” said Metric CEO Keith Hayes.

The new venture will be funded through Metric’s latest debt financing round, during which it had raised $15m. Metric said it has received strong “indication of interest” from an unnamed “high-net worth” strategic investor who is seeking to increase the size of the round to $30m and close it out entirely.

“Metric has made significant progress ..

October 6, 2022

Happyhour to invest in Chile’s Betsala

Happyhour.io, the igaming-focused seed and early-stage accelerator led by former Gaming Innovation Group (GiG) chief executive Robin Reed, has committed to an investment in Chilean online sports betting brand Betsala.

Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but Happyhour said the funding would help to accelerate growth for the operator.

Happyhour will also offer its operational, product and technical expertise to support Betsala and its long-term plans of becoming one of the leading sports betting brands in Chile.

Betsala launched in 2020 and is fronted by Chilean football legend Marcelo Salas, who also serves as an ambassador for the operator. During his playing career, Salas played for Italian Serie A teams Lazio, Roma and Juventus, while he was also captain of the Chilean national team.

“We have the right management team, experience and vision to be a sports betting and gaming powerhouse in Chile,” Betsala chief executive Albert Bellavista said. “The investment from..

September 14, 2022

Danske Spil GGR remains steady as slots growth offsets betting decline

Danske Spil, the Danish National Lottery, reported that gross gambling revenue (GGR) has largely remained steady year-on-year as positive and negative trends intersect.

The lottery received DKK2.35bn (£271m/$317m/€316m) total GGR in the first six months of 2022, which results in an after-tax revenue of DKK796m.

This result is largely similar to the total which the lottery achieved in the first half of 2021; with the lottery receiving DKK11m less in GGR in that period. However, after-tax revenue slightly fell by DKK4m.

The small increase in GGR can be explained by the increased popularity of lower-revenue-per-unit games such as lottery draws in tandem with a small decline in sports betting and casino. The decline in sports betting revenue can be attributed, in part, to the 2021 UEFA European Championship football tournament which was delayed a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with the games beginning 11 June that year. The fact that 2022’s Fifa World Cup has been delayed until the..

September 7, 2022

Betegy to ramp up US push following Yolo investment

Betegy has closed an investment round led by Yolo Investments – the venture capital arm of the Yolo Group, which operates the Sportsbet.io brand.

Betegy – which provides data visualisations, automated on-air and retail graphics, and casino marketing assets to operators – intends to use the funds to continue its scaling in the US. The announcement follows a previous funding round led by JKR Investment Group, which was announced in 2020.

iGB spoke to both Betegy founder and chief executive Alex Kornilov, and Yolo Investments founder and GP Tim Heath to discuss the deal and how Betegy plans to further adapt its products for the US market, and the startup funding sector as a whole.

What encouraged you to invest in the business; what do you think that Betegy brings to the market that wasn’t on offer before?

TH: Betegy’s great innovation is to automate the previously time-consuming process of turning reams of data into world-class content. We know the product works because it’s been succ..

August 31, 2022

BlueBet set for US debut after marketing spend drives growth

BlueBet said investment in marketing and technology and a successful US entry strategy were key as it exceeded financial targets during the year to 30 June 2022.

The mobile-first online wagering services provider, which listed on Australia’s ASX in July 2021, posted turnover of AUS$511.9m during the financial year, which was up 48.5% on the previous 12 months.

It cited a strong performance in its Australian business, with active customers, turnover, net win and gross profit all increasing significantly as it grows market share. It also now has market access in four US states through its ‘capital lite’ US entry strategy, and has this week announced the debut of its ClutchBet B2C brand in the Iowa market.

It noted high return on marketing investment demonstrated by growing brand recognition and

annual customer value to cost to acquire a first time depositor ratio of 2.7x. It had 53,000 active customers by the end of the financial year, some 64.2% more than 12 months previously.

Blue..

August 26, 2022

BetMakers CEO optimistic as revenue rockets after Sportech acquisition

BetMakers chief executive Todd Buckingham said the business is now “unquestionably robust and independent of any single contract or strategy”, following rapid revenue growth in 2021-22, aided by the acquisition of Sportech’s global tote arm.

The business brought in AU$91.7m in revenue during the year ended 30 June, though its losses also increased following the deal.

Global betting services – which previously made up the vast majority of BetMakers’ revenue – brought in AU$19.5m, up by 179.3%.

However, with acquisition-driven growth in other segments, it was no longer the leading revenue generator for the business.
Instead, the global tote arm – acquired from Sportech last year – was the new leader. Tote revenue was AU$46.9m, up from just AU$1.7m a year earlier as the acquisition closed in the final weeks of 2020-21.

The BetMakers global racing network brought in AU$4.1m, up by 28%.

Costs of goods sold also increased, but more slowly, from AU$9.3m to AU$25.4m, resulting in a gross..

August 26, 2022

Cost of living represents looming crisis

iGB op-ed: Zak Thomas-Akoo argues the gaming sector should brace for a squeeze as macroeconomic conditions start to bite.

“Now is the winter of our discontent,” burbled Richard III, in the famous warning of what happens when a clever clogs lets ambition outstrip means. More prosaically, winter is certainly on the mind of those in the UK as the country braces for a potential triple threat of recession, energy price shocks and generalised inflation, all of which have direct industry implications.

A combination of supply constraints, fiscal and monetary policy, and energy disruptions have made inflation a worldwide phenomenon but it is most ferocious in the UK. In August, annualised inflation reached 8.5% in the US, 8.6% in Eurozone, just 6.5% in France – and 10.1% in Britain.

As our long, hot and doomed summer recedes into the middle distance, from Middlesbrough to Downing Street, Britain is blowing off its dusty old picture books of 1978 as it braces for the squeeze, and it’s not muc..

August 23, 2022

Rush Street Interactive: the exception that proves the rule

At a time when US sports betting operators are shifting focus to profitability rather than expansion, Rush Street Interactive believes it is a step ahead of the competition. Chief executive Richard Schwartz explains how a disciplined approach, online casino and its pan-American ambitions, will achieve this.

The early stages of the US betting and igaming market have been typified by a race to build as big a customer database as possible, at whatever cost. Each state that launches experiences advertising shock and awe, as operators bankroll vast campaigns to use each rollout as a land-grab for new sign-ups.

Rush Street Interactive (RSI), the business that listed on the New York Stock Exchange in December 2020, has looked to take a different approach. At a time when there is greater scrutiny of company spending, and investors query how long hefty losses can be sustained, it has managed to keep its spending in check.

While the push for profitability is still relatively new to the wide..

August 17, 2022

Sportradar shares up 15% after raising full-year revenue guidance

Data provider Sportradar’s share price rocketed after it raised its full-year revenue guidance for 2022.

The announcement came as part of its second-quarter financial report, in which the provider also revealed that its revenue for the three months to 30 June was €177.2m, up 23.0% year-on-year.

In total, €29.1m of Sportradar’s revenue came from the US, up by 66.3% as the US market continued to expand. Rest-of-world betting services brought in €95.5m, up by 20.6%. This, the business said, was mostly due to more focus on “higher-value-add” services such as managed betting services.

Rest-of-world audiovisual services to betting operators came to €39.7m, up by just short of 10% thanks mostly to new customers.

Other operations brought in a further €12.9m.

The business then paid €43.4m for purchased services and data licences, up 33.1%, plus €64.4m in personnel expenses, up 37.6%, €21.2m in other operating income, a slight increase, and €49.2m in depreciation and amortisation, up by 75…

August 17, 2022

GiG CEO: Rationale for Sportnco deal proven by Q2 performance

A full quarter’s contribution from Sportnco has aided Gaming Innovation Group’s international expansion drive, and while new opportunities emerge in the Americas, Europe is also playing a key role in its growth trajectory.

Gaming Innovation Group’s (GiG) first quarter results for 2022 set a new high point for revenue, for the second consecutive reporting period. The supplier has now extended that winning streak to three quarters, reporting a 37.1% year-on-year jumping in revenue to €22.1m (€18.6m/$22.5m).

GiG Media, its affiliate division, continues to grow rapidly, but for the three months to 30 June, the platform business’ performance was the standout performer. Revenue grew 43.1% to €7.3m, reflecting a full quarter’s contribution from Sportnco.

Richard Brown, GiG CEO

Sportnco’s impact in Q2

In the wake of the first quarter results, chief executive Richard Brown talked up the anticipated impact of adding a proven sportsbook to GiG’s portfolio. Following Q2’s figures, it certa..

August 17, 2022

Genius beats revenue and earnings guidance in Q2

Sports data supplier Genius exceeded its revenue and earnings guidance in Q2 of 2022, while its loss was drastically reduced as large stock-based payments no longer weighed into its earnings.

The operator’s revenue exceeded its guidance for the quarter, which was set at $68m.

Betting technology, content and services brought in $44.8m, which was up by 10.4% year-on-year. Genius said about half of the increase was due to new customer additions, around $1.5m from renewed or renegotiated contracts with existing clients at higher prices, and a further $500,000 from “increased customer utilisation of existing Genius content”.

Revenue from media technology, content and services almost doubled to $15.0m. Sports technology content and services revenue was $11.3m, up 56.9%.

Looking at revenue geographically, $43.9m came from Europe, a 4.5% increase, $21.4m from the Americas, more than double the total from a year earlier, and $5.8m from the rest of the world, up by 34.9%.

Genius’ cost of re..

August 16, 2022

GiG sets €65m EBITDA goal for 2024 as Sportnco contributes to record Q2

Gaming Innovation Group (GiG) drastically upped its long-term targets – now aiming for earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of around €65m (£54.7m/$65.9m) by 2024 – following a record quarter bolstered by the acquisition of Sportnco.

The results – for the second quarter of the year – were the first to include sportsbook supplier Sportnco. GiG acquired Sportnco for €51.3m (£43.2m/$56.7m at the time) as the quarter began after agreeing the deal in December.

The business set an all-time record in revenue with €22.1m, up 37.1% year-on-year. While the acquisition helped the business, GiG also noted the total was up by 24.0% organically.

Media – covering GiG’s affiliate brands – continued to make up the majority of revenue, with €14.8m, up by 35.1% year-on-year, and by 5.0% from the previous record high set in Q1.

Of this total, €9.8m came from publishing brands and the remaining €5.0m from paid media. New launches for the division included a brand focuse..

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Tag: Finance