Sportech puts itself up for sale

London-listed gambling company Sportech is inviting offers for the company after it reported a jump in revenue.

Revenue in the year to date has grew by 5.8 percent, reaching £54.7m.

“The group has continued to trade well in the first few weeks of the current quarter and the outcome for the full year remains in line with board expectations,” – commented Richard McGuire, non-executive chairman of Sportech.

“During the coming weeks, we expect to provide a further update on the proposed distribution to shareholders and, at the appropriate time, provide further comments relating to the ongoing formal sale process. Our financial position remains robust, and will benefit further from annualised cost savings of at least £2m.”

The group’s activities are split into two areas: racing and digital, and venues. In racing and digital, a sports raffle product called Bump 50:50 increased revenue by 41.5 percent in the third quarter compared to last year, making the lion’s share of Sportech’s revenues.

The raffle app is used by several major sporting events in the US including the NFL and NBA, with half the takings shared among punters and the other half to charities.

Meanwhile, revenue from the group’s venues operations doubled to £1.2m in the third quarter.

While the company has kept mum about potential buyers, Sportech has began a strategic review while meeting with interested parties.  

Ian Penrose, Sportech’s chief executive, and its CFO, Mickey Kalifa, are both leaving the company in December, with no replacements announced.