iGaming Wrap-Up of CW 47-48
#iGaming News of the week
0.??????Casino giant Caesars Entertainment and developer SL Green are adding a new partner to their proposed Times Square casino: billionaire rapper and businessman Jay-Z and his Roc Nation. As a partner in the project, Roc Nation will help revitalize Times Square by partnering with neighborhood organizations to re-imagine programming in the district’s famous “bow tie,” the parties said in a press statement.
?"New York is a beacon, the epicenter of culture. We have the opportunity to create a destination at the heart of Times Square," said Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter. "My partnership with SL Green and Caesars, this coalition, has all the promise and commitment to economic opportunity, growth and enrichment for the community, and everyone who visits the Empire State."
?The parties are among a half-dozen teams that are also expected to submit proposals to the state for a first full-scale casino in the Big Apple. New York State prepares to issue three downstate casino licenses in the coming months, a move that has also attracted plans from other parties such as Wynn Resorts, Saratoga Casino Holdings and Mets owner Steve Cohen.
?#Breaking News
1.??????DAZN makes hush debut for its Italian sportsbook
Italy’s online gambling marketplace welcomes a new player as DAZN launches its sportsbook service powered by Bet Class Italia SRL.
The DAZNBet.it brand made its soft-launch debut at the beginning of December “to test and build-up its Italian sportsbook offering for local audiences”.
A key market of DAZN since 2018, the OTT platform has operated its on-demand streaming service, featuring exclusive coverage of all Serie A and UEFA Champions League matches.
A press release notified that Rome-based Bet Class Italia “will run the DAZN Bet service in Italy, as a separate licensed betting company from DAZN, under the leadership of Francesco Mastantuoni”.
2022 has seen DAZN launch its sportsbook platform in the UK, followed by Spain, yet company leadership remains tight-lipped on further market launches.
?2.??????Fanatics raises $700m for M&A purposes as company valuation climbs to $31bn
Sports merchandising firm and potential sports betting disruptor Fanatics has raised some $700m in its latest funding round, taking the company’s valuation to around $31bn.
According to the Wall Street Journal, around two-thirds of the capital came from parties which had not previously invested in the business, including private equity firm Clearlake Capital Group, which led the funding round.
Merchant banking firm LionTree was another of Fanatics’ new investors, while existing shareholders Silver Lake, Fidelity Management & Research and SoftBank Group also contributed.
Proceeds from the investment will be set aside for strategic M&A, the sources said, and will not be used to fund the firm’s day-to-day operations, but rather for upcoming M&A activities.
This marks Fanatics’ latest funding round after the business raised a further $1.5bn in March, at the time pushing its total valuation to some $27bn.
?3.??????Esports Entertainment Group approved for continued Nasdaq listing
Esports Entertainment Group has announced that on November 30, 2022, the Nasdaq Hearings Panel granted its request for continued listing on The Nasdaq Capital Market (Nasdaq).
The company’s continued listing on Nasdaq is subject to its evidencing compliance with the minimum bid price requirement by February 7, 2023, evidencing compliance with the shareholder equity requirement of a minimum $2.5 million stockholder’s equity by March 31, 2023, and adhering to certain other conditions and requirements.
The company is in the process of taking definitive steps to comply with all applicable conditions and criteria for continued listing on Nasdaq.
?4.??????India: Panel tasked with submitting iGaming taxation proposal reportedly yet to reach consensus
A panel of Indian state finance ministers tasked with submitting a report on proposed taxation of the booming iGaming sector has yet to submit its findings. According to local media, the group may not reach a consensus on the policy for the time being.
The report is crucial to a final decision on how the levies should be imposed, a senior government official said on Monday, as per Reuters. However, the panel is unlikely to reach a consensus this month, the official told reporters in New Delhi.
The move to set a new taxation regime for online gaming comes as the sector keeps gaining momentum in India. The increasing popularity of real-money iGaming has prompted foreign investors including Tiger Global and Sequoia Capital to back local gaming startups such as Dream11 and Mobile Premier League, popular for their fantasy cricket games
?5.??????New Streaming Platform: KICK.com - Twitch Alternative
A new streaming platform called KICK.com has arrived and it's got content creators excited about a potential new competitor for Twitch.tv streaming site.
KICK has launched it's beta service as a streaming site, allowing content creators to stream their favorite video games to viewers. The site is very similar to other streaming sites, including the most popular streaming site Twitch.tv.
The site was put in the spotlight recently as it was announced popular streamer trainwreckstv revealed he was going to be joining Kick as a "non-owner advisor" and "non-exclusive broadcaster".
He reveals that the platform will aim to give creators a greater share of revenue generated through monetization of streams in a 95%-5% split.
?#US / Canada
6.??????Ohio online sports betting launch set for more than a dozen operators on go-live date
More than a dozen sportsbooks are set to start taking bets in Ohio early next month and roughly double that number could go live sometime next year.
Ohio regulators have approved most operators seeking to offer online and/or retail sportsbooks in the state. Now many of the nation’s leading sports betting providers as well as a host of upstarts and smaller companies are preparing to go live in the coming weeks.
Ohio regulators have set 12:01 am local time, Jan. 1, 2023 as the universal launch for both in-person and online sportsbooks.
Among the books set to start taking bets shortly after midnight Jan. 1 include the 4 leading US brands havin 80% market share of FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM and Caesars, which will be joined by PointsBet, BetRivers, Barstool, Hard Rock's betJACK, Tipico, Betfred and bet365. Other potential brands set to go live on or near the launch date include betPARX and SuperBook.
?7.??????Two more Maryland online sports betting licenses advanced following launch
Two more operators are well on their way to offering online sports betting in Maryland, which should help ratchet up the competition in the state’s recently opened market for mobile wagering.
On Thursday, the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission found companies connected to Bally Bet and WynnBET as qualified for licenses to operate online sports betting sites in the Old Line State.
That approval moves the applications to Maryland’s Sports Wagering Application Review Commission (SWARC), which could decide whether to award licenses to the two bookmakers at a meeting later this month. In the meantime, the two companies are working with Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency staff to meet other operational criteria.
Seven operators are already taking bets in Maryland, but 21 applied for mobile sports betting licenses, meaning the market will continue to get more competitive. Maryland’s sports-betting law allows for up to 60 mobile licenses in total to be awarded.
?8.??????Maryland’s six casinos generate $163.4m in gaming revenue for November
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The Free State’s six casinos collectively made $163.4m in slot and games revenues in November, a 1% increase from the prior-year period. Casino gaming contributions to the state totalled $67.7m, which also represented a 1% year-on-year rise.
MGM National Harbor was a driving force behind this positive result, generating $71.6m, which was a 5.5% annual increase. It was only one of two casinos to report an uptick in revenue, along with the Horseshoe Casino which posted $16.3m in revenue, a 4.2% year-on-year increase.
The other four casinos – Live Casino & Hotel, Ocean Downs Casino, Hollywood Casino and Rocky Gap Casino, all showed marginal revenue declines.
?9.??????Colorado sports betting handle sees second-highest month on record with $526.6M in October
The Colorado Division of Gaming reported Friday the monthly sports betting figures corresponding to October 2022. The state recorded its second-highest month of total wagers with a handle of $526.6 million, a 17% increase from the prior month when the state saw a total of $450,2 million in bets.
Additionally, a year-over-year comparison shows a 7.2% increase in handle. Bets placed online amounted to $521.7 million, while retail operators took $4.8 million in wagers. January 2021 remains the month with the largest amount of total wagers, with $573,720,213 in bets.
The month was a great one for bettors as the 6.93% hold rate for operators was well below September's mark of 11.4% — a result of the mobile betting hold dropping from 11.4% to 6.9% and retail hold plummeting from 14.3% to 5.5%. In terms of gross gaming revenue, it reached $36.5 million during the month, a 28.9% decrease over the previous month.
?10.??Virginia consumers wager $528m on sports in October
Virginia sports betting handle was $528m in October, an increase of 23.6 per cent compared to October 2021 ($427.3m). Figures were 28.4 per cent ahead of the $411.3m wagered in September of this year.
Adjusted gross gaming revenue, defined as total bets minus winnings, bonuses and promotions and other authorised deductions, was $45.5m, up 364.3 per cent from October 2021 ($9.8m) but down 6 per cent from $48.4m in September this year.
Consumers won $476.9m, while $963,187 was issued bonuses and promotions. The Virginia Lottery accounted for a further $4.7m in deductions. Tax collected from sports betting was $7m, with $6.8m allocated to the state’s General Fund and $173,916 to problem gaming support.
#M&A & Finance
11.??888 chips away at debt via marketing of €200m secured notes
888 Holdings has announced a new tactic in its debt redt reduction strategy by using its 888 Acquisitions Limited subsidiary. The international gambling group intends to market €200m in senior secured notes, consisting of Senior Secured Fixed Rate Notes due 2027 and euro-denominated Senior Secured Floating Rate Notes due 2028.
Functioning as an offering exempt from the registration requirements of the US Securities Act, the notes are being offered as additional notes under the indenture date of 19 July 2022.
For this date, 888 Acquisitions issued €400m Senior Secured Fixed Rate Notes due 2027 and €300m Senior Secured Floating Rate Notes due 2028.
888’s statement detailed: “The company will use the gross proceeds of the Offering to repay and permanently cancel the same amount of its existing indebtedness under the sterling-denominated term loan A facility made available to the Issuer pursuant to a senior facilities agreement dated 29 June 2022 (as amended and restated on 19 July 2022).
?12.??Tabcorp prices $289m of long-term debt to ‘fund growth options’
Tabcorp Holdings Limited (Tabcorp) on Friday announced the diversification of its funding sources through the successful pricing of a new US$289 million issue of long-term debt to investors in the US private placement market (Notes).
The Notes will comprise two US dollar denominated tranches totalling US$289 million with a weighted average coupon of 7.75%, and after swapping into Australian dollars will total A$425 million across:
? 7 years – A$249 million (equivalent)
? 10 years – A$176 million (equivalent)
?The Notes are scheduled to settle in March 2023, subject to customary conditions. Proceeds from the Notes are to be used for general corporate purposes, the repayment of existing indebtedness and to fund growth options consistent with Tabcorp’s strategy since demerger.
?13.??Vici to acquire remaining stake in MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay JV for $1.27bn
Blackstone and VICI Properties have entered into a definitive agreement in which VICI will acquire Blackstone’s 49.9 per cent interest in the joint venture that owns MGM Grand Las Vegas and Mandalay Bay Resort. VICI already owns 50.1 per cent of the venture.
The transaction is valued at approximately $1.27bn cash. The property-level debt has a principal balance of $3bn, matures in 2032, and bears interest at a fixed rate of 3.558 per cent per annum through March 2030.
The properties, situated at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip, are subject to an existing triple-net lease agreement between the joint venture and MGM Resorts International. The lease will generate annual rent of approximately $310m upon the commencement of the next rental escalation on March 1, 2023.
?14.??Wynn sells Encore Boston Harbor real estate assets for $1.7bn
Wynn Resorts has completed its Encore Boston Harbor transaction with Realty Income Corporation, selling the land and real estate of the property for $1.7bn.
Having received all necessary regulatory approvals for the deal, and with a cash cap rate of 5.9%, the net proceeds of the Massachusetts-based property transaction will bolster Wynn Resort’s global liquidity position to $4.4bn.
Under the terms of the sale, Encore Boston Harbor will continue to be operated by Wynn Resorts via a triple net lease agreement with Realty Income.
The annual rent of the lease initially begins at $100m for 30 years with an option for an additional 30-year renewal.
#Legal & Regulation:
15.??The KSA clamps down on illegal game of chance World Cup advertising
‘Orange fever’ is gripping the Netherlands following its emphatic 3-1 victory over the US in the Round of 16 at the Qatar World Cup. The Dutch national squad will be facing Argentina, an early tournament favorite among the bookies, in the quarter-finals. Needless to say, sports betting has seen a sharp rise in the country as a result of on-pitch success.
However, with increased gambling activity comes unauthorised activities and promotions, often aimed at underage people. These commonly occur with advertising of World Cup pools, which is prohibited but nonetheless occurred via at least two providers, according to the Ksa.
Over the past week, several providers of games of chance have been reprimanded for breaching Dutch gambling standards. Rules state that the name or logo of a gambling company cannot appear in the same communication or image as a ‘role model.’
?16.??Ontario auditor claims casinos do not assess source of funds
The Office of the Auditor General of Ontario has criticised anti-money laundering (AML) practices at casinos in the province, saying that they do not verify the source of funds of large amounts of cash.
The findings were released in the office’s 2022 Annual Report on organisations in Ontario. These included the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG).
From May 2021, OLG made it mandatory for land-based casinos to check the source of funds for all players who make single transactions of CA$100,000 (￡60,747/€70,677) – however, providing proof of these source-of-funds checks was not required. Also, it is specified in OLG’s AML policies that winnings must be verified before any cheque worth more than CA$3,000 can be issued.