iGaming Wrap-Up of CW 32-33
#iGaming News of the week
0.?????? Fanatics officially out of beta and fully launched in four states
Fanatics Sportsbook has been accepting bets in Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, and Tennessee for several months but always referred to operations as being in beta,
The beta and soft-launch period is officially over though and the sportsbook app is available on iOS and Android for anyone in any of the four listed states.
“After six months of beta testing, we are excited to officially launch the Fanatics Sportsbook product to the public,” said Scot McClintic, Chief Product Officer, Fanatics Betting and Gaming. “We are laser focused on solving pain points facing customers by offering a faster, easier, and a more rewarding sports betting experience. The strategic patience to build a product for the long-term has given us an opportunity to redefine a customer’s expectation of what a sportsbook should be. With the Fanatics Sportsbook product foundation built and wholly owned, customers should expect unparalleled speed of feature improvement, delivery, and innovation.”
#Breaking News
1.?????? WynnBET closing sportsbook operations in 9 of 12 US markets
Wynn Resorts (WYNN.O) is winding down its online sports betting and iGaming platform, WynnBET, in certain U.S. states due to a lack of clear rules and higher customer acquisition costs, the casino operator said on Friday.
The company said it was ceasing operations in Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Louisiana, New Jersey, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. The decision to pull out of West Virginia comes a couple of months after it launched WynnBet in the state.
Wynn, however, said operations in Nevada and Massachusetts will continue unaffected, while those in New York and Michigan remain under review.
Shares of the company were down about 4% in afternoon trade.
2.?????? MGM adds new card to European hand as BetMGM launched in UK
MGM Resorts International has extended its reach in Europe, building on its acquisition of established multinational igaming operator LeoVegas by launching its BetMGM brand in the UK.
BetMGM began as a joint venture between the Las Vegas-based entertainment conglomerate and London-headquartered international group Entain. However, the UK brand will operate outside of this joint venture, using LeoVegas platform as well as Kambi‘s sportsbook technology.
The betting brand has been made available to UK customers via mobile and desktop, including apps, offering sports betting and igaming. A national media launch is planned in September, MGM detailed.
Bill Hornbuckle, MGM Resorts CEO, said: “BetMGM is a proven brand in the sports betting and igaming space, and we look forward to welcoming international players into our platforms designed specifically for them.
3.?????? Ukraine reinstates 18% online casino turnover tax
The government of Ukraine has reinstated an 18% tax charge to be applied on online casino turnover. The decision was confirmed via a telegram of Danylo Hetmantsev, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada’s Finance Committee.
The tax charge was reinstated on 10 August, following an update to Article179 of the Ukraine tax code. The change to the tax code was authorised as the Finance Committee seeks to raise a further UAH1.5bn (€35m) for the national budget in 2023.
Further developments sanctioned last week saw the government order KRAIL – Ukraine’s Gambling and Lotteries Commission – to begin cancelling/terminating gambling licences for failure of market activity or non-payment of licensing fees.
4.?????? GiG posts 40% revenue growth and record EBITDA margin in Q2 2023
Gaming Innovation Group (GiG) has recorded 40% year-on-year revenue growth to €31.1m in Q2 2023.
Significantly, the growth was driven by a 22% organic increase in revenue.
Meanwhile, GiG’s adjusted EBITDA experienced 68% growth year-on-year, reaching €14m.
This growth culminated in a record EBITDA margin of 45%, which is making steady progress towards the company’s target of a 50% margin.
Furthermore, the company witnessed a notable 173% year-on-year boost in EBIT, amounting to €6.6m, with an EBIT margin of 21.1%.
5.?????? 888 Holdings records ￡881.6m in H1 2023 revenue
888 Holdings has posted its H1 results for 2023, reporting revenue of ￡881.6m – a 165% increase on H1 2022.
The graph below shows the company’s revenue from 2020-2023, showing that H1 2023’s sum was significantly higher than the next largest sum of ￡528.4m reported in H1 2021.
Breaking down its revenue, 888 made ￡335.9m from its UK & Ireland division, 208% above what it reported in H1 2022. Meanwhile, from its international arm, 888 posted ￡266.3m – representing a 31% increase on the same period last year.
Overall, its total UK revenue accounted for ￡615.3m of its total ￡881.6m sum, a sum detailed in the chart below showing 888’s revenue for H1 2023 and what it is comprised of.
6.?????? DraftKings takes 50% of all MA bets in July
DraftKings has continued to assert itself as the dominant player on home turf as it handled half the amount wagered in Massachusetts during July.
Per data from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, DraftKings handled $144.9m last month, with handle for the entire state standing at $288.1m. As expected, this marked a third consecutive month of decline owing to the slowness of the sporting calendar during this period of the year.
As well as holding the most money during July, DraftKings enjoyed a stronghold rate of around 10.2%, meaning the Boston-headquartered operator generated $14.4m in taxable revenue for the month. This once again constituted around half the money made in the Bay State.
Meanwhile, FanDuel remained the closest competitor for the top spot but is still some way behind as the Flutter operator took $86.2m in bets. With a state high 11.7% hold rate, FanDuel made $9.9m in revenue.
The top three was completed by BetMGM, which took $22.5m in bets last month, with an 11.2% hold rate equating to $2.5m in revenue.
7.?????? US commercial gaming crosses $16 billion revenue mark for second consecutive quarter
U.S. commercial gaming industry recorded $16.07 billion in revenue in the second quarter fueled by a significant surge in demand for online gaming.
Revenue from commercial gaming, encompassing traditional casino games, sports betting and iGaming together helped the industry surpass the $16 billion mark for a consecutive second quarter. The three-month period marked the industry’s second highest-grossing quarter ever and the tenth consecutive quarter of annual growth.
Nationwide gaming revenue grew at 8.1% year over year in Q2 compared to 16% annual growth in the first quarter when the industry set a new quarterly high at $16.6 billion, reveals data compiled by the American Gaming Association.
#US / Canada
8.?????? Illinois sports betting revenue close to $55m in June
Sportsbooks in Illinois took almost $55m in revenue in June despite the seasonal decline in sports during the end of Q2.
As per data released from the Illinois Gaming Board, operators took $665.8m in handle for the 30 days in June, up 5.9% year-over-year as Illinois quietly asserts itself as one of the US’s largest sports betting markets.
Operators enjoyed a hold rate of 8.2% in June, though this rate was the lowest win rate since February, and 2.6ppts behind the record 10.8% set in the previous month of May.
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Consequently, operators made $54.7m in revenue throughout the month of June, up 33.8% YoY as the Land of Lincoln continues to grow as an online sports betting market.
9.?????? Massachusetts sports betting handle dips below $300m in July
Player spending on sports betting in Massachusetts fell for the fourth consecutive month in July, while revenue was also down month-on-month.
Total handle for retail and online sports betting reached $294.9m. This was 11.3% less than $332.0m in June and the lowest monthly total since the launch of legal online betting in April.
It was also the first time that combined land-based and internet betting spend fell below $300.0m.
Online wagering accounted for $288.1m, down 10.9% month-on-month. Retail betting also fell 20.0% to $6.8m.
10.?? Iowa betting revenue up despite another handle drop in July
Player spending on sports betting in Iowa fell again in July, although the state was able to post a month-on-month increase in revenue.
Handle for the month amounted to $109.7m. This was 0.7% up from $108.6m in July 2022 but 5.4% lower than $115.6m in June this year. It also represented the fourth consecutive month of spending decline.
Online spend stood at $101.3m for the month, with retail betting at $8.4m.
11.?? Indiana July reports: $212.7m in casino revenue
The Indiana Gaming Commission has reported an 11 per cent increase in revenue month-to-month.
Indiana’s ten casinos and two racinos reported $212.7m in gaming revenue for July, according to the Indiana Gaming Commission. The figure was up 11 per cent compared to June’s $191.6m.
Slot revenue was $173.2m, while the table win reached $39.5m. Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana was the state’s top-earning facility, recording $36.9m, followed by Horseshoe Indianapolis which reported $30m.
Horseshoe Hammond registered revenue of $26.4m, Caesars Southern Indiana $21.6m and Harrah’s Hoosier Park $19.6m. Indiana collected $29.4m in tax revenue from slot machine and table game play and $2.2m from settled sports wagers.
#M&A & Finance
12.?? FansUnite turns EBITDA positive in Q2 following sale of B2C McBookie brand
Toronto-listed iGaming company FansUnite reported positive EBITDA of C$4.3m in Q2 2023, compared to a C$11.1m EBITDA loss in the prior-year comparative period.
Reporting its Q2 financial results, the company revealed that it generated revenue of C$5.3m during the quarter, an increase of 13.7% year-on-year.
The cost of revenue was reported at C$2m, down from C$2.8m, giving the business a gross margin of C$3.3m, up from C$1.9m in Q2 2022.
Still, the business reported a total comprehensive loss for the quarter of C$1.3m, although that represents a significant closing of the gap towards profitability compared to the C$11.6m comprehensive loss it reported in Q2 2022.
13.?? Galaxy Gaming sees 33% rises in both revenue & EBITDA for Q2 2023
Breaking down its Q2 revenue since 2020, the chart below shows that Q2 2023 has been Galaxy’s best year post-Covid, with Q2 2020 posting a sum of $663,972 – in the three quarters since, Galaxy has massively improved on that low figure.
Meanwhile, looking at its adjusted EBITDA, in Q2 2023 Galaxy recorded $3.2m against Q2 2022’s $2.4m – another 33% increase.
During the past four quarters, Galaxy’s adjusted EBITDA has (much like its revenue) increased dramatically post-Covid. For Q2 2021, Galaxy posted an adjusted EBITDA sum of $2.1m, while its Q2 2020 adjusted EBITDA was recorded at negative $1.4m.
Furthermore, Galaxy’s net income was significantly up on the Q2 2022 loss of $1.1m – totalling $356,769.
14.?? Allied acquires majority stake in mobile games developer
Esports and poker operator Allied Gaming & Entertainment has acquired a majority stake in mobile games developer Beijing Lianzhong Zhihe Technology Co.
Under the deal, Allied will pay approximately $7.0m (￡5.5m/€6.4m) to acquire the stake from Ourgame International Holdings. Allied will also assume a controlling interest in the developer’s board.
The deal remains subject to certain closing conditions, but is expected to close by the end of September.
Founded in Beijing, China in April 2022, Zhihe mainly develops card and Mahjong casual games. During its first nine months of operation in fiscal year 2022, Zhihe posted $10.0m in revenue.
#Legal & Regulation:
15.?? 888 subsidiary pays ￡2.9m settlement in Gibraltar for multiple failings
An online subsidiary of 888, Virtual Global Digital Services, has reached a settlement of ￡2.9m ($3.7m) with Gibraltar's Gambling Commissioner due to failings in Know Your Customer (KYC) and Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD) procedures.
The settlement comes after an internal review conducted earlier this year that highlighted several issues in these areas.
The review found the company had ineffective KYC controls, historical overreliance on high thresholds for EDD intervention, inconsistent and weak EDD checks and an inconsistent approach to account restrictions and closures.
16.?? UKGC CEO slams “unacceptable” misuse of industry statistics
The Gambling Commission’s (UKGC) CEO Andrew Rhodes has penned an open letter criticising the “misuse of statistics” in the industry to support arguments around regulation. In the letter, Rhodes recognised the divisive nature of the gambling sector and suggested “it is not for the Gambling Commission to attempt to referee all points in a debate.”
Faced with that reality, he said, all stakeholders have the right to put forward their own arguments on the sector, but that “what is wholly unacceptable is the misuse of statistics to support that argument.”
The UKGC is highly concerned at the “significant increase in the misuse of statistics around gambling as different parties seek to make persuasive arguments for or against different proposals.”
#Tech:
17.?? Softswiss stats: 78% of all bets are mobile
Softswiss has announced its statistics regarding the popularity of betting across different sports and betting patterns.
In terms of statistics, the following sports have gained the highest popularity for bets through the Softswiss platform: football, basketball and tennis.
Alexander Kamenetskyi, Head of Softswiss' Sportsbook, commented on how esports is on a growing trajectory and how bettors should keep an eye on the momentum of cyber sports.
Kamenetskyi, Head of Softswiss Sportsbook, commented: “The leading trio in sports by the Bet Sum holds no surprise, yet esports continues its remarkable expansion. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has consolidated its position among the top 10 sports with a staggering 339% year-on-year surge in bets and a remarkable 388% increase in the Bet Sum.