Month: May 2022

If earnings fall within this range, this would be at least 70.2% more than in 2021, when EBITDA came to €4.7m.

Acroud’s board has also released targets for the future of the company, stating that they are aiming for a 20% organic growth in EBITDA, on average, during the financial years from 2023 to 2025. This would suggest EBTDA of between €13.8m and €17.3m by 2025.

The business is also aspiring to decrease its net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio to a maximum of 2.5 times by December 2025, by conducting operations “at low financial risk”.

The board stated that these are “reasonable long-term expectations” for the company.

This comes after Acroud reported an “exceptionally strong first-quarter performance” in Q1 2022, ahead of the full publication of the results.

The name change comes into effect from today (5 May) and will be accompanied by a new logo and rebranded website.

The provider said its new Ebet brand would emphasise its focus on delivering services to the millennial and generation Z wagering market, as well as its commitment to esports enthusiasts and sports and casino games fans.

“Our leadership team and I believe this is the right time to rebrand our company to reflect who we are and where we are going,” Ebet chief executive Aaron Speach said. “This new brand and evolving positioning perfectly illustrate our growing ambition to serve the entire Millennial and Gen Z market.”

The rebrand follows a series of developments at the business including its filing for a patent in January for a new betting system, which will allow players to bet on price increases and decreases on groups of financial instruments.

In December, the provider also secured a British gaming licence via a deal signed alongside its acquisition of Aspire Global’s B2C assets. During the same month, Ebet purchased Aspire’s B2C division for $75.9m (£60.6m/€71.6m), taking control of Aspire’s B2C online content portfolio and sportsbook brands.

Other recent acquisitions include online sportsbook and casino brands Karamba, Hopa, Griffon Casino, BetTarget, Dansk777 and GenerationVIP, which allowed Ebet to gain over 1.25 million deposited customers in more than 15 countries.

The state’s handle for the month was some way behind the record $563.7m set in January of this year, with $488.3m being wagered online and the remaining $3.4m at retail sports betting facilities.

Players won a total of $466.0m, which left $24.4m in gross revenue before free bets, down from $40.5m in January.

After accounting for $17.6m worth of free bets and promotional credits issued in the month, this left $6.9m in taxable revenue, down 64.8% month-on-month. The state was also able to collect $670,686 in tax from sports betting in January.

Looking at individual operator performances, FanDuel claimed top spot in terms of wagers processed, taking $142.5m in bets during February. DraftKings placed second with $131.7m, then BetMGM on $99.8m.

However, DraftKings ranked first for gross revenue with $9.8m, ahead of BetMGM on $8.6m and Caesars with $2.3m. FanDuel was forth with $2.0m in gross revenue.

Bally’s said that a special committee of its board directors had terminated all consideration of the proposal.

The Bally’s board also advised the business to seek a cash tender offer for its shares, which is projected to raise between $300m-$500m.

Lee Fenton, CEO of Bally’s, said that the operator has a number of opportunities for growth in its future.

“The company has very substantial opportunities before it, including the integration of the Gamesys acquisition, the build-out of Bally’s North American interactive business and the continued strategic expansion of our land-based footprint in the US,” said Fenton. “With these opportunities in front of us, we have great confidence in the future as we move forward.”

Soo Kim, Standard General’s managing partner and chair of Bally’s, said that the decision to terminate the deal would not effect how Standard General supports the operator.

“While we are of course disappointed with the outcome of the discussions of our proposal, as we said from the outset, we intend to remain a supportive, long-term investor in the company,” said Kim. 

The $2.07bn (£1.48bn/€1.77bn) bid was submitted in January this year. At the time of submission Standard General owned over 20% of the business.

Had it gone through, Standard General would have acquired all Bally’s shares it did not already own, paying $38.00 per share.

In February, Bally’s retained both Macquarie Capital (USA) Inc. as a financial advisor and Potter Anderson & Corroon LLP as legal counsel in relation to the bid.

DraftKings said the acquisition of the online gaming specialist – announced in August of 2021 – would allow the business to “broaden its reach and enhance the combined company’s igaming product offerings”.

DraftKings expects $300m worth of annual synergies from the deal at maturity, while it also anticipates revenue to grow through cross-selling opportunities.

“Acquiring Golden Nugget Online Gaming gives us synergies across our business,” said Jason Robins, Chairman and CEO of DraftKings. “We anticipate that this acquisition will provide meaningful revenue uplift by utilizing our data-driven marketing capabilities and a dual brand igaming strategy, gross margin improvement opportunities, and cost savings across external marketing and SG&A.

“I am proud to welcome the Golden Nugget Online Gaming team to the DraftKings family.”

DraftKings will pay 0.365 newly issued shares for each common share of Golden Nugget Online Gaming. At the time of the deal, DraftKings shares traded at $51.59, though they have since declined to $14.99 upon market close yesterday.

As a result, the deal – which was set to be worth $1.56bn at the time of announcement – would now be worth around $450m.

As part of the deal, Tilman Fertitta, chairman and CEO of Golden Nugget Online Gaming, will join the DraftKings board. In addition, certain integrations will be in place between DraftKings and the Golden Nugget land-based business, also led by Fertitta, from which GNOG was spun off.

In addition, GNOG president Thomas Winter will become DraftKings’ president of North America igaming.

“This will be an alliance unlike any other in the digital sports, entertainment and online gaming industry,” Fertitta said. “Now that the acquisition is completed, I look forward to what the future will bring for our combined company and am confident this relationship will be a huge success.”

The deal was initially expected to close in the first quarter of 2022. However, that deadline passed without the businesses gaining all the approvals necessary to combine.

As a result, the deadline was pushed back to 31 May.

Revenue in the three months to 31 March 2022 amounted to $401.6m (£320.9m/€381.6m), up 13.9% from $352.6m in the same period last year.

Casino revenue increased 7.8% year-on-year to $279.8m, while food and beverage revenue climbed 39.5% to $65.4m, room revenue jumped 68.0% to $36.8m and other revenue was up 23.1% to $19.2m. Red Rock also noted $213,000 in revenue from management fees.

Almost all revenue came from Red Rock’s operations in Las Vegas, Nevada, with revenue here reaching $399.7m. The other $1.9m in revenue was derived from corporate and other sources.

Costs were higher across the board, with the exception of depreciation and amortisation, which declined 38.5% to $33.4m.

However, total operating costs and expenses were 36.1% lower at $270.8m, with Red Rock noting that its first quarter of 2021 included an asset impairment of $169.7m, whereas this year it did not record any such charges.

This left an operating profit of $130.8m, in contrast to a $71.2m loss in Q1 last year, while $844,000 in earnings from joint ventures increased this total to $131.6m.

Red Rock also noted $26.7m in interest expenses, meaning pre-tax profit for the quarter stood at $105.0m, compared to a loss of $106.3m at the same point in 2021.

The operator paid $12.7m in income tax, which left a net profit of $92.2m, in contrast to the $106.6m loss posted last year. Red Rock said $43.9m of this was attributable to its non-controlling interests, meaning net profit attributable to Red Rock was $48.3m, which was still a significant improvement in the $64.8m loss in 2021.

In addition, Red Rock said that adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was 14.1% higher at $178.7m.

Revenue for the three months to 31 March 2022 amounted to €46.3m (£39.0m/$48.7m), up 33.4% from €34.7m in the corresponding period last year and a new quarterly record.

Aspire said all of its segments experienced strong year-on-year growth, with revenue from its Aspire Core platform and managed services business climbing 24.8% to €34.0m. This, the developer said, was helped by ongoing improvements to the Aspire Core platform and the new AspireEngage CRM system.

Revenue from the Pariplay aggregation and games segment also increased 38.5% to €9.0m, driven by 17 new operator deals agreed during the quarter, while revenue from the BtoBet sports betting business jumped 88.3% to €4.4m.

Breaking down Q1 performance geographically, the UK and Ireland remained Aspire’s core market with revenue here reaching €21.3m, up 101.6% year-on-year. Revenue from the rest of Europe slipped 21.7% to €13.2m, while rest of world revenue increased 72.2% to €8.8m and Nordics revenue was up 14.8% to €3.0m,

Other developments at Aspire in Q1 included online lottery platform provider NeoGames as launching a public offer worth SEK4.3bn to acquire 100% of the shares in the business. The deal could close before the end of the first half of this year.

Also in Q1, Aspire received full certification to operate in the Netherlands, allowing it to roll out its player account management platform solution, sportsbook and casino games throughout the country.

Moving on to costs and operating expenses for the quarter were 37.1% higher at €38.1m, with spending up across distribution expense, gaming duties and administrative expenses.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 18.8% to €8.2m, while after accounting for €2.7m in depreciation and amortisation, this left an operating profit of €5.6m, up 14.3% year-on-year.

Aspire also noted €1.6m in interest income and foreign currency exchange, which was partly offset by €487,000 in finance expenses. As such, pre-tax profit reached €6.7m, up 28.9% on last year.

The developer paid €570,000 in income tax and also noted €1.4m in losses from associated companies. This left a net profit of €4.8m, down 20.0% on last year, though Aspire noted the Q1 2021 figures included an additional €1.4m worth of capital gain and discontinued operations. 

“We have a continued strong business momentum, and the quarterly performance once again demonstrates the strengths of our offering and the capabilities of our highly motivated team,” Aspire chief executive Tsachi Maimon said.

“Aspire Global has set new records in the quarter with revenues of €46.3m and EBITDA of €8.2m. I ́m especially proud to see the progress we have made in the quarter in North America as well as in regulated European markets by adding tier-one operators to our client list and being awarded additional certifications.”

Maimon also referenced the takeover proposal from NeoGames, saying that the offer is a “natural step” for Aspire and a strategic fit for the business.

“As part of the NeoGames Group, Aspire Global will continue to take advantage of its key strengths,” Maimon said. “Beside the cutting-edge, technology advanced offering, and skilled teams, Aspire Global’s foremost asset is the long-term commitment to its partners. 

“On top of our agenda is always the success of our partners and our ability to support in the fulfilment of their potential. Through our strong partnerships with leading operators and distributors, we will continue to build long-term value.”

Revenue for the month amounted to $553,465 (£443,601/€526,481), down from $966,752 in March of 2021, but 464.0% higher than $98,135 posted in February this year.

The state’s handle for March reached $5.2m, a drop from $6.7m in March last year but level with the amount wagered by players during February 2022.

Delaware Park claimed top spot in the market in terms of both revenue and handle. For the month, Delaware Park posted $281,719 in revenue after players spent $2.6m betting on sports.

Dover Downs ranked second with $158,120 in revenue off a handle of $1.5m for March, then, Harrington Raceway with $113,626 in revenue and a $1.1m handle.

Players won a total of $4.5m from sports betting during the month, placing 168,561 wagers in the process.

The monthly sports betting figures came after the Delaware Lottery also reported an 11.6% year-on-year increase in igaming revenue during March, while player stakes climbed 21.8%.

Revenue for the month amounted to $1.0m, an improvement on $897,781 in March 2021 and also 18.8% higher than the $843,247 recorded in February of this year.

Players spent a total of $37.4m on igaming during March, up from $30.7m in March last year and a 53.3% increase from $24.4m in February this year.

Kim will exit Zynga to take up the position of chief executive of online dating business Match Group.

He served as president for six years, having joined Zynga in June 2016 following almost 10 years as senior vice president of mobile publishing for Electronic Arts.

Prior to this, Kim was director sales and channel strategy for The Walt Disney Company for just under three years.

Kim will remain with Zynga until 30 May to support transition efforts.

“Working with Frank and the entire Zynga team has been a privilege and one of the most rewarding experiences of my career,” Kim said. “I’m proud of what we have accomplished together and look forward to watching the team’s continued success as Zynga embarks on an exciting new chapter as part of the Take-Two family when the transaction is completed.”

Zynga chief executive Frank Gibeau added: “For the last six years, Bernard has been a trusted partner to me and the entire leadership team as we have worked hard to deliver on our mission to connect the world through games.

“Bernard has played an important role in our company’s leadership team as we’ve broadened our offerings, built our presence in the industry and delivered unparalleled games to our players. 

“On behalf of everyone at Zynga, we thank Bernard for his many contributions to Zynga and extend our sincerest congratulations on becoming CEO of Match Group.”

Kim’s departure comes after it was announced in January that video game developer Take-Two Interactive had agreed to acquire Zynga in a deal valued at $12.7bn.

Take-Two, which owns both Grand Theft Auto publisher Rockstar and 2K Games, which develops the NBA 2K series, agreed to pay $3.50 in cash and $6.36 worth of shares of Take-Two stock for every Zynga share.

The combination is expected to create a business that will bring in $6.1bn annually in net bookings, a total expected to grow by 14% per year.

Videoslots’ sportsbook will take up the IBIA’s monitoring and integrity system, which provides alerts for cases of suspicious betting.

“Maintaining the integrity of our betting products is of paramount importance to Videoslots and we recognise the considerable business benefits from joining a globally recognised integrity body like the IBIA,” said Martin Calleja, head of sports at Videoslots.
“The association’s network and representation of regulated betting operators provides the perfect partner to bolster our business protection protocols and to identify and punish betting related corruption.”

Videoslots first launched its sportsbook in June 2021. The operator currently has licences in Sweden, Spain, Denmark and Malta.

“I’m delighted to welcome another international betting operator into the IBIA,”  said Khalid Ali, CEO of IBIA. “Videoslots’ membership reinforces our position as the leading customer account-based betting integrity monitoring and alert system in the world.”
“The association looks forward to working closely with Videoslots to protect its betting products and customers from corrupt betting activity.”

Last month, ComeOn Group became the IBIA’s most recent member. Before this, Jack’s Casino & Sports joined the association.