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Kambi Group plc Q3 Report 2021
Financial summary
- Revenue amounted to €41.6 (Q3 2020: 28.1) million for the third quarter of 2021 and €127.5 (2020: 70.8) million for the period January to September, an increase of 48% and 80% respectively
- Operating profit (EBIT) for the third quarter of 2021 was €14.7 (6.5) million, at a margin of 35.4% (23.3%), and €50.0 (10.0) million, at a margin of 39.2% (14.2%) for the period January to September
- Profit after tax amounted to €11.9 (5.1) million for the third quarter of 2021 and €40.3 (6.8) million for the period January to September
- Earnings per share for the third quarter of 2021 were €0.384 (0.164) and €1.302 (0.220) for the period January to September
- Cash flow from operating and investing activities (excluding working capital movements and acquisitions) amounted to €11.9 (6.9) million for the third quarter of 2021 and €39.9 (8.2) million for the period January to September
Key highlights
- Group revenue of €41.6 million, a 48% year-on-year increase, taking revenue for the first nine months of the year to €127.5 million, eclipsing the total for the whole of 2020
- Acquired esports data and odds provider Abios, strengthening Kambi’s technology capability and transforming Kambi into a leading supplier of esports products and services
- Expanded partner network with signings of Island Luck in The Bahamas and BetCity in the Netherlands
- Continued expansion with on average one partner launch per week, including going live online on day one in Arizona, the 15th state in which Kambi has launched
“I’m pleased to report another excellent quarter for Kambi, with strong financial results against tough 2020 comparables, which is a testament to our robust business model and the hard work of our staff across the world. Kambi Q3 revenue was up 48% year-on-year, operating margin was once again strong at 35% and we continue to be highly cash generative. Excluding DraftKings, operator turnover was up 10% year-on-year, highlighting the underlying growth in the business.
We had a strong start to the new NFL season, which kicked off on 9 September, with our platform outperforming the competition and our market-leading Bet Builder product engaging a large number of bettors and returning higher average operator trading margin. Furthermore, revenue in Q3 was boosted by our continued US expansion, including day one launches in Arizona, the 15th state in which Kambi has launched. In total, Kambi completed approximately one launch per week on average throughout the quarter.
As we saw in Q3, M&A remains an ongoing trend in this industry, with the number of transactions featuring sports betting and gaming assets on the rise due to a growing appetite to invest in companies with highly sought-after technology. This illustrates the inherent value in proven businesses and supports a strong belief in future growth prospects in regulated markets across the world.
On the subject of M&A, I was delighted to announce our acquisition of esports data and odds provider Abios during the quarter. We believe Abios is a great fit for Kambi, and its technology and expertise will enable us to create a first-class esports product that will diversify our revenue streams by capitalising on the opportunities presented by this fast-growing vertical. The acquisition is also in line with our longer-term strategy to further modularise our platform and, with a strong balance sheet, we remain in a good position to explore additional acquisition opportunities in the future.
As ever, Kambi is committed to creating the world’s leading sportsbook and we have spent more than a decade focused exclusively on the sports betting vertical, developing a core product that is near impossible to replicate. Whether it’s our ability to offer a great betting experience, being ahead of the curve in terms of regulation and compliance or having a wealth of network data at hand to effectively power the engine, Kambi has both the technology and expertise in place to deliver long-term success for our partners.
Of course, during the quarter we learned of Penn National Gaming’s decision to acquire theScore, a Canadian sports media company which owns a player account management system and plans to develop its own sportsbook. It’s incredibly difficult, as well as costly, to build, maintain, and continue to develop a first-class sportsbook, as we’ve seen with unsuccessful efforts of others in the past. In the meantime, we’ll continue to support their growth with our fantastic platform and service we have built over many years, which remains very much of interest to our growing list of prospective partners.
In summary, we’ve performed well, and the future looks bright. We currently have a sales pipeline as strong and varied as I’ve known it. As the global trend of regulation continues, we are in a great position to capitalise on future opportunities as and when they arise, and we have announced the implementation of a share buyback scheme.
Many of us at Kambi have been in this industry for more than two decades, during which time we’ve seen the sports betting market change markedly. This change is reflected in the evolution of Kambi, where we have built a business that thrives in regulated market conditions, grown to become a global leader, and partnered with major brands across the globe, many entering the space for the first time. This experience means we know what it takes to succeed and I am therefore excited by what the coming years hold for Kambi.”
Latest News
1/ST PARTNERS WITH FRANCE GALOP TO BOOST INTERNATIONAL RACING BETWEEN FRANCE AND U.S.
1/ST, North America’s preeminent Thoroughbred racing and leading pari-mutuel wagering company, has today announced a breakthrough partnership with France Galop, the governing body of French horse racing.
This new initiative sees both parties come together to form a series of high-class partnerships that will power increased international participation across a host of top-quality Graded contests and marquee race days, beginning with the $100,000 Grade 3 Gallorette Stakes on Preakness 149 race day at 1/ST’s Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland on May 18. The winner will be automatically qualified to run in the €250,000 Group 1 Sumbe Prix Jean Romanet Stakes at Deauville on August 18. The Galorette winner will also receive a free equine travel stipend to cover its subsequent travel costs to France.
The collective aim is to establish long-lasting links between revered races in France and valuable turf contests at 1/ST racetracks across North America, boosting the international profile and prize funds of all participating contests and increasing the number of runners entered in these races which, in turn, will engage a wider international audience and drive global wagering turnover.
This innovative collaboration with France Galop leverages natural synergies between two powerhouses of the sport. Moreover, it builds on similar global “gateway” partnerships which 1/ST has already formed with Ascot Racecourse (via Gulfstream Park’s Royal Palm series for Royal Ascot’s juvenile races) and the UK Jockey Club around the Group 1 July Cup and the Eclipse Stakes, now twinned as qualifiers for the newly minted California Crown taking place at Santa Anita Park on September 28, marking California’s richest day of racing.
As an automatic qualifier for France Galop’s Prix Jean Romanet, the Gallorette Stakes also shines the spotlight on a high-profile undercard for Preakness 149. This year’s Preakness 149 race day will be the most lucrative in the event’s history with $3.3 million on the line, highlighted by the running of the 149th Preakness Stakes, the middle jewel in the Triple Crown, featuring an increased $2 million purse. These enhanced purses reflect 1/ST’s vision for the future of the highest standard of world-class Thoroughbred horse racing, combined with unique and elevated guest experiences, and exciting opportunities for owners, trainers and bettors to usher in a new era for racing.
Aidan Butler, President of 1/ST, said: “1/ST is thrilled to create another great global partnership, breaking new ground in France with our friends at France Galop. This Gallorette-Romanet pathway is an exciting trial for hopefully more reciprocal race days in France, considering France Galop’s rich heritage in staging many of the most prestigious turf contests in Europe at courses like Deauville, Chantilly and Longchamp.
“We look forward to announcing more global racing partnerships over the year ahead. Whether we’re bolstering the brand, increasing horse-recruitment numbers, or driving wagering dollars overseas, it’s high time for more innovative moments on the worldwide racing stage.”
Henri Pouret, Chief Operating Officer at France Galop, added: “We’re naturally delighted to be teaming up with 1/ST on this compelling initiative which will introduce many new French racing fans to Preakness 149 and add some welcome transatlantic flavour to the Group 1 Sumbe Prix Jean Romanet Stakes, now in its 20th year of attracting the best middle-distance horses in the business.
“The travel stipend is an excellent incentive for facilitating stress-free long-haul travel, helping to secure a stellar field of global contenders for the Romanet, and proving that racing is a sport whose worldwide appeal is no barrier to worldwide participation, be it in France or the States. We look forward to welcoming the Gallorette victor to Deauville later this summer and building on the success of US-trained horses at other elite European events, such as Royal Ascot.”
Gaming
Digital Asset Horse Racing Game Stables Appoints Lebnan Nader CEO And Unveils International Expansion Plan
Stables, the Paris-based Web3 Equestrian Fantasy Game, has appointed venture capital veteran Lebnan Nader as Chief Executive Officer.
Lebnan Nader, who had founded and run several gaming and technology businesses, will oversee an international expansion as Stables seeks to add horses and attract owners from outside its French home market.
Launched in January 2023, Stables was born from an ambitious project funded by PMU, the European leader and number 3 worldwide in horse betting, alongside the startup studio 321. The game is designed to bring the excitement of horse racing into the digital realm by combining real data from actual racehorses with an online Web3 gaming experience where horses are represented as tradable non-fungible tokens.
“Stables brings together two of my favorite domains, video gaming and horse racing. Two sectors I’ve been involved in for the past 12 years. The game’s ambitions are high, and that’s what convinced me,” said Lebnan Nader, CEO of Stables. “The teams have done a tremendous job, and we will continue to develop the game, but my priority will be our community, as they are our greatest strength.”
A graduate of HEC Paris with nearly 20 years experience in strategy, product development, and market positioning in the digital sector, Lebnan co-founded an internationally acclaimed video and VR gaming studio, and also co-founded a software company for lottery and betting operators.
PMU’s initial gamble to reach a new audience has paid off as Stables now boasts a community of several thousand engaged players, aged 25 to 40 on average. The community is currently composed of 70% French players and 30% from the rest of the world.
The Stables teams are now expanding the gaming experience by adding new features that will allow any player, even without owning NFTs, to be able to explore Stables for free. A seasonal horse racing system with an in-game leaderboard will be introduced, as well as “The Paddock Gazette,” a feature allowing the analysis of all NFT data and comparing their performances.
The ability to interact with other players and access numerous new horses are among the features currently in development.
“In 2023, Stables succeeded in realizing PMU’s bold vision of diversifying the world of horse racing into Web3 and becoming today’s reference in equestrian fantasy gaming. Contributing alongside its historic partners to the financial support for an accelerated development of Stables represents for the Tezos Foundation a natural progression to the adoption of Tezos. Among other things, the Tezos Foundation always listens to the needs of management teams and economically engages in projects that have adopted its blockchain to be an active participant in their growth stages,” says Jean-Frédéric Mognetti, Executive Director of the Tezos Foundation.
“Convinced of the relevance of the project, it seemed important to involve new investors. We enthusiastically welcome the financial support of the Tezos Foundation, which strengthens a proven technical collaboration that the project has benefited from since its inception,” comments Emmanuelle Malecaze-Doublet, CEO of PMU.
Latest News
SINGAPORE & UK TOTE COMMINGLE POOLS ON BRITISH RACING
The UK Tote Group and Singapore Pools have signed a new agreement to commingle pools.
The agreement sees both organisations combine liquidity with customers of Singapore Pools betting into the UK Tote’s pools on British racing meetings. This creates bigger UK pools, ensuring a better customer experience for racing fans in the UK and in Singapore and an improved financial return to the sport.
The agreement was made in partnership with Arena Racing Company and Racecourse Media Group as the media rights holders for British racing’s 59 racecourses. Singapore Pools have been long-standing partners of British racing, hosting local pools on the sport. This collaboration between these stakeholders further deepens the relationship, benefiting racing fans and the sport.
Simon Leong, Chief Product Officer of Singapore Pools, expressed his enthusiasm for the new commingling arrangement with the UK Tote. He said, “We are delighted to collaborate with the UK Tote on this new front, which not only provides our customers access to larger pools but also contributes to British horseracing which have been telecasted in Singapore since 2010. We deeply appreciate our longstanding partnership with British racing and look forward to further strengthening the communal horseracing ties shared between us. Singapore Pools will continue to bring quality products from around the world to Singapore and elevate the racing experience for all.”
Jon Knapman, International Chief Commercial Officer of the UK Tote Group, said: “This is a really positive development and we’re pleased to have the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues at Singapore Pools to ensure bigger pools for all our customers. We will continue to cooperate and commingle with our international pool betting partners to ensure bigger, more unified pools on our racing. We’d like to thank all involved who contributed to this new agreement.”
Nick Mills, Chief Commercial Officer of RMG, said: “Singapore Pools have been a long-standing partner of British and Irish racing, having hosted local pools for over 15 years. This is a great example of British racing working together and we are delighted to work with all parties to facilitate commingling into the UKTG and therefore provide greater liquidity, which will see benefits to all.”
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