Flutter Entertainment Archives

March 12, 2024

Waterhouse VC: Spotlight on industry leaders

In his latest column, Tom Waterhouse of Waterhouse VC shines a spotlight on three industry leaders and discusses their paths to success.

In every industry, there are prominent figures who stand out and the wagering industry is no exception.

This month, we shine a spotlight on three distinct leaders in the industry: Tim Heath, a crypto wagering pioneer; Peter Jackson, CEO of Flutter Entertainment; and David Walsh, renowned as one of the world’s largest professional horse racing gamblers.

Over the last decade, the online wagering industry has expanded significantly through the proliferation of mobile-focused platforms. Heath and Jackson lead companies at the forefront of digital innovation in the industry.

YOLO

Originally from Australia, Heath is a serial wagering industry entrepreneur and venture capitalist. After university, he started a software development and ecommerce firm, Heathmont.net.

In 2013, he launched Coingaming Group, a crypto wagering operator and supplier which reb..

January 18, 2024

Flutter earnings call: FanDuel ready to “get ahead” in igaming

Peter Jackson, chief executive of Flutter Entertainment said FanDuel plans to “get ahead” in igaming during a post-close trading update for the company's full-year 2023 results.

Flutter’s Q4 financial results saw growth in the US push revenue 25% to £9.51bn (€11.08bn/$12.07bn). Looking at FanDuel first, Jackson outlined the operator’s three-year strategy for success. He said Flutter plans for FanDuel to complete a race to the finish line in the final year.

“From an igaming perspective, we’re following the strategy we laid out at the capital markets day,” he explained.

FanDuel IS NEARING THE END OF A THREE-YEAR PERFORMANCE STRATEGY, SAID JACKSON

“We said in the first year there were things that were broken that we were going to fix. We said in the second year we’d get to product parity and in the third year we’re going to get ahead of the market.”

Using M&A as a driver for success

The chief executive said that Flutter has been focused on organic growth, “and that’s something..

September 27, 2023

Flutter acquires majority stake in Serbia’s MaxBet for €141m

Flutter Entertainment has acquired an initial 51% stake in Serbian omnichannel sports betting and gaming operator for €141.0m (£122.6m/$149.0m) in cash.

The deal, Flutter says, provides the group with access to the regulated Serbian market and supports its ongoing expansion plans, including within the wider Balkans region.

The agreement also states that Flutter has the opportunity to acquire the remaining 49% in MaxBet in 2029.

Ranked among the leading operators in Serbia with an approximate 20% online share, MaxBet employs more than 2,400 staff. In the 12 months to June 2023, it posted €145.0m in regulated revenue and €32.0m worth of adjusted EBITDA.

The transaction remains subject to customary regulatory clearances but is due to close in the first quarter of 2024.

“I am excited to announce the addition of MaxBet to the Flutter portfolio,” Flutter chief executive Peter Jackson said. “This acquisition continues our progress against the strategic priorities we have set for our inte..

August 9, 2023

Jackson highlights scale, product as profit drivers for Flutter

Peter Jackson, CEO of leading online gaming conglomerate Flutter Entertainment, highlighted the business’ scale and subsequent ability to invest in its products as being behind its crossing of the profitability threshold.

In H1 2023, the Flutter reported profitability on both a US and group-wide basis. In the company’s earnings call, Jackson highlighted the business had previously expected 2023 to be the year in which the threshold was met.

“I think it’s important we remember the context a few years ago,” Jackson said. “We knew this year would be the tipping point, we reached that milestone earlier because the business is bigger than we anticipated.

“We knew this year would be profitable, we’ve proved the model works, we will continue to acquire and invest in as many companies as we possibly can.”

Jackson emphasises the importance of scale

The executive emphasised Flutter’s size, revenue and market share as the business retained its title as the largest online gaming business in t..

August 9, 2023

Flutter’s US business reaches “profitability inflection point” in H1

Flutter Entertainment has revealed its US business reached a “profitability inflection point” during the first half, with CEO Peter Jackson describing the period as “pivotal”.

Group revenue was up 41.9% in the six months to 30 June, while net loss also flipped to a profit. Much of this, Flutter said, was down to the performance of its US segment, namely the FanDuel Group brand.

Since taking ownership of FanDuel in May 2018, the brand has gone from strength to strength. FanDuel has moved far from an initial daily fantasy sports offering to now deliver sports betting and online casino in states across the US.

FanDuel investment coming in H2

US is Flutter’s star performer in H1

A strong six months for European operations

Australia disappoints

Working down the balance sheet

FanDuel US listing nears

Flutter CEO: Profits will fuel H2 investment for FanDuel

With CEO Jackson revealing that the US business took on more than two million new players in the first half, there is little ch..

July 31, 2023

Fox Bet to close by 31 August

Flutter Entertainment and Fox Corporation have announced that their Fox Bet sports betting joint venture will close next month.

A phased closure of the Fox Bet operations will take place from today (31 July) until 31 August.

Flutter has been operating the brand as part of The Stars Group US, along with the US-facing operations of the PokerStars business.

It was confirmed that Flutter will retain ownership of both PokerStars and FanDuel Group. However, Fox will retain future use of the Fox and Fox Bet brands. These include the Fox Bet Super 6 prediction game, with a revamped version of this still due to go live this summer.

In addition, Fox, which holds a 2.5% stake in Flutter, will retain its option to acquire 18.6% of FanDuel.

Fox Bet’s short history

Fox Bet was born in May 2019 when Fox linked up with The Stars Group to launch a new sports betting service in the US. This was prior to Flutter acquiring The Stars Group in May of the following year.

At the time, it was planned fo..

May 23, 2023

Inspired extends virtual sports deal with Paddy Power

Inspired has signed an agreement to extend its existing virtual sports provider contract with Flutter-owned Paddy Power.

The extension will allow Inspired to continue providing Paddy Power’s retail venues across the UK and Ireland with its products.

“We are thrilled to extend our partnership with Paddy Power in supporting their retail venues across the UK and Ireland, as we have done for the past 12 years,” said Brooks Pierce, president and chief executive officer of Inspired. “We will continue to provide Paddy Power with our latest products and technology giving them the advantage of our leading content for their virtual sports offerings.”

Vince Bateson, head of retail gaming at Paddy Power, said the deal would allow Paddy Power to continue offering quality virtual sports products.

“We are pleased to extend our relationship with Inspired for virtual sports products in all our retail betting shops in the UK and Ireland,” said Bateson. “Our customers enjoy virtual products and our o..

November 9, 2022

Flutter CEO: Gambling Act white paper likely pushed back to 2023

Flutter chief executive Peter Jackson said that he thinks that the Gambling Act white paper is most likely to be delayed until next year, as he suspects new ministers will wish to “make their mark” on the document.

Speaking at Flutter’s Q3 earnings call, Jackson said he could not predict the the Gambling Act white paper timeline with any confidence, given that its release had repeatedly been pushed back by personnel changes in government and at the Gambling Commission. However, he said he would think its release was more likely to be in 2023 than this year.

“I don’t know if I can really comment on timing because I’ve tried to comment for the last two years and keep getting it wrong, so I might have lost some credibility there,” he said. “But I suspect it’ll end up coming out after Christmas as there isn’t much time now before Christmas.

“The new ministers I think will want to make their mark on it.”

Gambling Act review delays

The white paper is the next phase in the Gambling Act r..

November 9, 2022

Flutter revenue up 31% in Q3 as US becomes largest market

Flutter Entertainment forecast a 31% year-on-year increase in revenue for the third quarter of its 2022 financial year, primarily due to growth within its US and international businesses.

In a trading update, Flutter said that revenue for the three months to the end of September is expected to amount to £1.89bn (€2.17bn/$2.18bn), which would be a significant increase from £1.44bn in the corresponding period last year.

On a constant currency basis, revenue is forecast to increase by 82%.

Flutter said it expects this to be driven by growth within the US, where its revenue is forecast to rise 114% year-on-year, or 82% on a constant currency basis, to $598m, making it Flutter’s largest market.

This, the group said, was down to a 106% rise in sports revenue – comprising sportsbook, exchange, daily fantasy sports, advance deposit wagering and B2B product verticals – driven by customer acquisition across existing states as the new NFL season began.

US igaming revenue is also expected t..

November 3, 2022

Austrac orders SportsBet and Bet365 to conduct money laundering audits

The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac) has ordered an audit of both Bet365 and Flutter-owned SportsBet, to determine if the operators have broken money laundering rules.

If SportsBet or Bet365 is found to be non-compliant with the rules, Austrac may then take further action, such as a court-ordered fine.

Austrac, a government body focused on money laundering, noted the action was “the result of an extensive supervisory campaign that assessed entities within the corporate bookmaker sector and follows the recent commencement of an investigation into Entain”.

The auditors will examine compliance with four areas of money laundering laws.

The first is whether the two operators adopted and maintained “an AML/CTF programme that has risk-based systems and controls in place to effectively identify, mitigate and manage money laundering and terrorism financing risks”.

They will next look at whether the operators conducted proper money laundering risk assessments.

September 5, 2022

FanDuel mobile and retail sports betting live in Kansas

FanDuel has launched its sports betting offerings in Kansas, in the form of an app as well as a retail sportsbook in conjunction with Boyd Gaming.

Kansas bettors can now place wagers on the online FanDuel Sportsbook, and can download its official app.

Alongside mobile sports betting, FanDuel has also opened a temporary retail sportsbook with Boyd Gaming at the Kansas Star Casino, with the grand opening of the permanent venue at the casino scheduled for 8 September.

The ceremony will see NFL wide receiver Jordy Nelson place the ceremonial first bet.

The retail sportsbook at the Kansas Star will feature four betting windows, 28 HD televisions and 20 self-service betting kiosks.

Kansas has become the latest US state FanDuel’s mobile betting app is live in, after most recently launching in Wyoming and Louisiana in March and January respectively.

Currently, FanDuel has 51% total market share in the US, according to parent company Flutter’s recently released Q2 results.

Last month, Fa..

August 12, 2022

Flutter CEO: we are well-placed to “capitalise” on UK reforms

Flutter chief executive Peter Jackson said that he expects his business to ultimately be a winner from the results of the UK Gambling Act review, as Flutter’s scale will help it navigate changes while smaller businesses may exit the market.

The comments came during Flutter’s earnings call for the first half of 2022, following results in which the business revealed that its FanDuel brand had turned a profit during Q2.

Jackson (pictured) argued that in both the UK and Australia, Flutter’s businesses had “outgrown regulations”.

He discussed the introduction of point-of-consumption taxes in these markets as an example of a regulatory challenge that had a short-term negative impact, but made Flutter brands stronger in the long term.

“Our scale and operating leverage have allowed us to mitigate the impacts, both through operational efficiencies, and also through market share gains as smaller operators were required to exit from the market.”

In the presentation, Flutter also noted that ..

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Tag: Flutter Entertainment