Month: May 2022

LD 585 would allow for the state’s four Native American tribes to apply for a licence to operate online sports betting. These tribes may then partner with one online operator each.

The licence fee for mobile sports betting is $200,000, which must be paid every four years.

In addition, the nine combined racetracks and off-track betting facilities but Churchill Downs’ Oxford Casino may apply for a licence to operate retail sports betting, which carries a $4,000 fee to be paid every four years.

Operators must pay 10% of their adjusted sports wagering revenue to the state.

Betting on matches including Maine-based collegiate sports teams is not permitted.

The legislation noted that the state’s tribes – all of which are part of the Wabanaki nation – had “previously been excluded” from most forms of gaming in the state, and said allowing them to operate online betting would go towards correcting that.

The bill also says that if mobile gaming is ever made legal in the state, the four tribes must be provided the same access to the market as commercial operators.

“This law provides meaningful economic opportunities for the Wabanaki Nations,” Mills said. “It incentivises investment in tribal communities, and it formalises a collaboration process on policy that sets the foundation for a stronger relationship in the future.”

“I am proud of the work that the Wabanaki Nations and the state put into drafting this legislation, and I am grateful for the honest effort, the extensive research and the hundreds of hours of negotiations and discussions which bore fruit in this bill. 

“We will continue to work closely with the tribes to make progress for the Wabanaki people.”

Mills signing the bill follows years of efforts to introduce legal sports betting to Maine. In January 2020, the state legislature passed a sports betting bill but it was vetoed by Mills, while an effort last year was approved by the House but stalled after being assigned to the Special Appropriations Table.

Under law in France, operators must submit actions plans outlining their measures against fraud, money laundering and terrorist financing to ANJ each year.

The reviews culminated in ANJ creating a three-stage action plan, which centres on a risk-based approach. The stages are understanding the risks of how an operator’s activity could be exposed, how an operator dedicates resources to managing these risks and managing a business relationship with players.

For risk analysis, ANJ recommended that operators distinguish risk analysis with reference to the type of gambling involved and assess how critical the risk is.

For organisation and dedicated resources, ANJ stated that operators should improve staff compliance, focusing on anti-money laundering, fraud and terrorist financing measures.

ANJ also recommended that operators ensure their asset-freezing measures comply with the law, and make sure measures are in place for all staff to declare suspicious transactions.

Looking more closely at lottery operator Française des Jeux and horse racing monopoly Pari Mutuel Urbain, ANJ advised that both operators increase point-of-sale checks on retailers.

Last week ANJ approved actions plans for responsible gambling practices for casinos and horse racing operators.

The results cover the three months ended 31 March.

This brings year-to-date revenue to $41.8m, up 63.9% from the same period in 2021.

Turnover came to $120.7m, which was a rise of 44.5% yearly. However this was down by 6.1% from Q2 2022. BlueBet attributed this to a growth in customers, which reached an all-time high of 49,556 in the quarter. This was up by 9.9% from the previous quarter and 84.7% yearly.

The third quarter turnover brings the year-to-date turnover to $385.2m, up by 55.2% from the corresponding period in 2021..

Net win percentage was 10.9% for the quarter, up by 0.7% from Q3 2021.

In addition, BlueBet announced the launch of its B2C US brand ClutchBet, which is set to launch in states the operator has already gained market access in- Iowa, Colorado and Louisiana.

BlueBet secured market access in Louisiana last week, through a deal with Rubico Acquisition Corporation- which owns casino and horse racing track Louisiana Downs.

BlueBet will launch ClutchBet will launch in Iowa first, in the next few weeks.

“We’re proud to provide a bespoke, mobile-first American wagering brand that will resonate strongly with the US customer,” said Bill Richmond, CEO of BlueBet. “Our vision for ClutchBet is to be a differentiated player providing a unique and memorable betting experience.”
“We believe the US sports betting audience is unique, but raw, and we want ClutchBet to grow with the market to connect with American bettors. ClutchBet will draw upon our sportsbook expertise and technological know-how to provide a best-in-class user experience.”

BlueBet also announced two appointments to its US operations division.

Jake Francis has been appointed to the role of senior vice president of operations for Americas, which will see him oversee BlueBet’s operations in North America.

Francis, who most recently held a role with Penn Interactive, has experience as a senior leader within the US regulatory landscape.

“The ClutchBet brand will immediately introduce decades of experience in bookmaking and sportsbook technology to an emerging and rapidly growing industry,” said Francis. “I look forward to assisting our efforts in building out a customer-centric and dynamic team and build out a truly innovative and mobile-first sportsbook product.”

Sean Phinney has been appointed as senior vice president of marketing for Americas, where he will primarily lead ClutchBet marketing for its expansion in the US.

“ClutchBet is poised to be a disruptive brand in a sector that rewards lateral thinking and providing the best customer experience,” said Phinney. “To be able to contribute to the brand’s development from day one is an exciting challenge and I’m thrilled to be joining the team.”

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has approved the operator for three licences, covering its SkillOnNet brand, plus the SpinGenie and SlotsMagic brands.

All three licences will last one year, expiring on 1 May, 2023.

Ontario launched its regulated market on 4 April of this year. Operators such as Unibet, theScore, BetRivers, 888, PointsBet, LeoVegas, Bwin, Bet365, FanDuel, BetMGM and Caesars all secured licences on launch day, April 4, while more recent licensees include Betway, ComeOn and North Star.

The Ontario government first revealed plans to end the lottery’s online gambling monopoly in April 2019. Final standards for online betting and gaming were published last September. The online gaming standards included a number of limits related to game design, such as a ban on autoplay, while the sports betting rules required operators to join an integrity body such as the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA).

This brought the year-to-date wagering total to $401.7m. This is almost $49m more than the state’s full year 2021 results, which were impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Online was the most popular form of betting in March, with customers staking $27m throughout the month. This was an increase of 15.8% from February, and 27.7% year-on-year.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

The operator noted that, in local currency terms, revenue was level year-on-year, however.

The operator’s decision to withdraw from the Dutch market when it opened on 1 October continued to have a major impact on revenue. With the Netherlands excluded, revenue would have been up 9% year-on-year.

Elsewhere, LeoVegas noted that the business was especially successful in Sweden, where a SEK5,000 deposit cap for online casino was repealed during the quarter.

“Sweden had another good quarter and generated a new record level of revenues for the period,” LeoVegas said. “During the quarter, the company was once again the largest commercial operator in the Swedish market and continued to capture market shares.”

The business also said that “growth was favourable” in Spain and Italy, 

The €98.5m in revenue came on deposits of €309.5m, which was up 4.6% from Q1 of 2021.

LeoVegas paid €15.6m in costs of sales, which was down by 2.2%, plus €16.3m in gaming duties, up by 6.9%.

This left a gross profit of €66.5m, up by 1.7%.

The operator then paid €14.9m in personnel costs, up 12.2%, while other operating expenses were up 39.1% to €12.1m. Marketing costs, meanwhile, dropped by 17.2% to €29.9m. 

The business also made €254,000 in other income, while €4.2m worth of expenses were recognised as capitalised development costs.

As a result, LeoVegas’ earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) came to €14.1m. This was down from 35.6% in Q1 of 2021.

After €3.3m in depreciation and amortisation costs, plus a further €1.2m for the amortisation of intangible assets, LeoVegas reported an operating profit of €9.6m. This was 163.8% more than Q1 of 2021’s operating profit.

The business paid €1.2m in finance-related costs for a pre-tax profit of €8.4m, a 228.0% increase.

LeoVegas’ tax bill, however, skyrocketed from just €178,000 in Q1 of 2021 to €15.4m. Almost all of this, €14.9m, was due to historical taxes for the years 2015 to 2018 for the Royal Panda business, which was acquired in 2017. This follows the Dutch tax authority launching an audit of the LeoVegas Group’s subsidiaries.

LeoVegas announced its results at the same time as its board announced that it recommended shareholders vote in favour of a $670m bid from MGM Resorts.

“MGM is also very clear in its release that this acquisition will provide a unique opportunity for LeoVegas to create a scaled global online gaming business,” LeoVegas chief executive Gustaf Hagman said. “And the board believes that the logic – the industrial logic, the strategic fit between LeoVegas and MGM – is very attractive and should serve both the companies and its employees very well in the future.”

LeoVegas chairman Per Norman added that scale would be particularly important in the future, as the business tackles regulatory challenges in markets such as the Netherlands and Germany.

“We also see that the consolidation is ongoing in the industry, and that size will matter even more in the future in order to continue to invest in product and platform and marketing and to cope with taxes. So there is an obvious economy of scale if you want to take on the leader — to be the leading online gaming company in the world, and that is the vision and mission for LeoVegas.

Hagman also said that Kambi would remain LeoVegas’ sports betting supplier.

“We have a long-term relationship with Kambi, and we are very happy with the support and the product that we got from Kambi,” he said. “So yes, we will continue doing that. And hopefully, they will help us now when we are entering new countries, making acquisitions.” 

In his new role Jennings will oversee all of FanDuel’s financial dealings, including strategy, accounting and tax.

This will be in support of FanDuel’s sportsbook, casino, racing and retail offerings.

At Flutter, FanDuel’s parent company, Jennings held the role of group director of investor relations, financial planning and analysis. Before this he was an equity research analyst at Goldman Sachs Asset Management and J&E Davy, focusing mainly on online and mobile betting.

“David is a consummate financial executive who brings valuable institutional knowledge to FanDuel, and I’m delighted to welcome him to our leadership team,” said Amy Howe, president and chief executive officer for FanDuel.

“As we continue to grow our business and increase our market share, David will bring a keen eye for how we can continuously improve our financial approach and discipline, a hallmark of Flutter and FanDuel’s strength.”

Last month FanDuel appointed Tricia Alcamo to the role of chief people officer.

Mohegan will launch a betting and gaming brand in Ontario, named after its Fallsview casino resort. The sportsbook for this brand will be provided by Kambi, featuring its ice hockey and bet builder products.

“The Canadian market, and Ontario in particular, is full of potential for Kambi and our partners so I am pleased to have agreed this partnership with Mohegan and its Fallsview online mobile brand.” Kambi chief executive Kristian Nylén said. “I look forward to the combination of our industry-leading mobile sportsbook and the prominent Fallsview name as together we bring players in Ontario all the excitement of single and in-game wagering along with the unrivalled bet combinability our sportsbook offers.”

Rich Roberts, president of Mohegan Digital for Mohegan Gaming and Entertainment, said he was excited to launch an online product outside of the US for the first time. Mohegan also operates an online product in Connecticut, where it is one of two operators permitted to offer online gaming and one of three that may offer sports betting.

“It’s an exciting time for the mobile gaming industry as sports betting continues to grow, and we’re thrilled to be entering into another partnership with Kambi Group plc with the launch of PlayFallsview online mobile sportsbook,” he said.

“Once launched, this will mark MGE’s first online mobile gaming product outside of the United States and we’re really looking forward to our partnership with Kambi Group on this new venture.”

Ontario launched its regulated market on 4 April of this year, after a process to end the provincial lottery’s monopoly that started in 2019.

The deal was first announced in November 2021.

Games Global, which was established in 2021, distributes content for use in international markets. It is a private capital backed company led by CEO Walter Bugno and CFO Tim Mickley.

Bugno formerly held roles with IGT and Lottomatica, while Tim Mickley previously worked for SafeCharge and Playtech.

Bugno resigned from his role with IGT in May 2021.

The deal will see Games Global acquire Quickfire’s back catalogue of gaming content and an extensive customer network.

“It is an exciting milestone for both Microgaming and Games Global, and is the culmination of months of hard work and dedication from teams on both sides,” said Andrew Clucas, CEO of Microgaming. “The online gaming industry will undoubtedly present a wealth of opportunities for Games Global, and we wish them the very best for their journey ahead.”

Microgaming will now focus on the provision of platform systems to several online gaming brands- which will include Games Global – and will continue to offer its sports betting software services to Betway.

“We are excited for the full operational launch of Games Global and welcoming a new era in igaming,” said Bugno. “Microgaming’s historical legacy and impact on the industry has been significant, and we wish the organisation all the best in its next chapter.”

The LeoVegas board unanimously recommended the offer.

MGM will pay SEK61 (£4.90/€5.85/$6.16) per share to acquire all of LeoVegas’ share capital, which LeoVegas noted was a premium of 44% compared to LeoVegas’ closing share price on 29 April. The operator said it will finance the deal through its existing cash reserves.

Bill Hornbuckle, chief executive and president of MGM Resorts, said that the deal would allow MGM to offer online gambling across Europe and elsewhere. The operator currently offers the BetMGM online product in North America through a joint venture with Entain, a business MGM proposed an offer to acquire last year.

“Our vision is to be the world’s premier gaming entertainment company, and this strategic opportunity with LeoVegas will allow us to continue to grow our reach throughout the world,” he said. “We have achieved remarkable success with BetMGM in the US, and with the acquisition of LeoVegas in Europe we will expand our online gaming presence globally. 

“We believe that this offer creates a compelling opportunity that allows the combined teams of MGM Resorts and LeoVegas to accelerate our global digital gaming growth and fully realize the potential of our omnichannel strategy. We look forward to being able to welcome the LeoVegas team to our MGM Resorts family.”

In addition, certain leading LeoVegas shareholders including largest chairholder and chairman Gustaf Hagman have promised to vote in favour of the deal. Combined, there shareholders own 15.3% of LeoVegas. Board member Torsten Söderberg, who owns 4.6% of the business, has not agreed to vote for the deal, but “has stated that he is very supportive of the offer”.

The LeoVegas board said the deal made sense for both businesses given the realities of the modern gaming industry.

“LeoVegas operates in an industry which is characterised by, inter alia, high innovation pace, new regulation and consolidation,” the board said. “In this context, the board of directors believes that the industrial logic and strategic fit between LeoVegas and MGM is attractive and should serve both the company and its employees well in the future.”

If the deal is approved by 90% of LeoVegas shareholders it is expected to close in the second half of 2022.

Regulus Partners noted that the deal raised questions about MGM’s relationship with Entain going forward.

“The obvious elephant in the room is the BetMGM JV with Entain,” Regulus said. “Entain is successfully emebedded in all major US states, has joint ownership of the BetMGM brand and is far more capable than LeoVegas in sportsbetting and poker product categories. 

“Entain is not mentioned in MGM’s press release, which perhaps tells its own story. The narrative is currently of a complementary non-US strategy, but by owning LeoVegas MGM will clearly compete with Entain everywhere but the US, while the three will be going head-to-head in Canada.”

For 2021, LeoVegas reported marginal year-on-year revenue growth to €391.2m (£329.0m/$445.1m), while its net profit was down 38.9% year-on-year