Every week, CasinoBeats breaks down the numbers behind some of the industry’s most fascinating stories. Our latest headline reflection features another month of revenue gain for New Jersey gambling, Entain’s Dutch troubles and a moment of relief for 888.
461.5
New Jersey has reported a year-over-year uptick in February gaming revenue following gains across igaming and sports betting.
However, land-based casino operations across the Garden State’s nine casino hotel properties dipped during the month in comparison to the same period the previous year, with three casinos undergoing double-digit percentage revenue declines.
According to the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, total gaming revenue in February from casinos, racetracks and partners came in at $461.5m, a 12 per cent improvement in comparison to February 2023’s $412.2m. Year to date, total revenue has risen by 20.2 per cent to $1.02bn (YTD 2023: $849.1m).
Per segment, land-based casino operations had the biggest share of total revenue generated during the month with $211.6m, followed by igaming with $182.3m and sports betting with $67.6m.
In comparison to the same period the previous year, casino revenue of $211.6m in February was a 1.6 per cent decrease compared to February 2023’s $215m. YTD revenue for the segment stands at $416.3m, down 2.4 per cent YoY (YTD 2023: $426.6m).
Per vertical within casino, slot machine revenue fell by 0.3 per cent YoY to $158.9m (Feb 2023: $159.3m) while table game revenue declined slightly to $52.7m (Feb 2023: $55.6m).
Igaming revenue improved by 27.9 per cent YoY to $182.3m (Feb 2023: $142.6m). YTD, igaming revenue stands at $365.6m, up 23.7 per cent in comparison to the previous year (YTD 2023: $295.5m).
Revenue during the month across New Jersey’s sports wagering operators improved by 23.7 per cent to $67.6m (Feb 2023: $54.6m) with a handle of $1.08bn. YTD, sports betting revenue rose by 87.7 per cent to $238.3m (YTD 2023: $127m) with a handle of $2.8bn.
1.7
Denmark’s gambling regulator, Spillemyndigheden, has stated that the amount spent on gambling by Danes in 2023 dropped in comparison to the previous year.
According to the regulator, Danes spent DKK 10.3bn (€1.38bn) on gambling in 2023, down by 1.7 per cent in comparison to 2022’s DKK 10.4bn.
Apart from 2021, gambling spending in Denmark has decreased year-over-year since 2019, when spend was at DKK 11.2bn.
Spillemyndigheden noted that the Danish public wagered the most on lotteries in 2023, spending DKK 3.45bn, 34 per cent of the total wagered in 2023.
Lotteries were followed by online casino with DKK 3.08bn (30 per cent), betting at DKK 2.18bn (21 per cent), gaming machines at DKK 1.18bn (11 per cent) and land-based casino at DKK 362m (four per cent).
The regulator said that online casinos have undergone the greatest growth since 2012, rising by 192 per cent, while betting has grown by 55 per cent. However, gaming machines, land-based casinos and lotteries have all declined over the same period.
17
Progress has been made for the legislation of casinos in Thailand as the region agreed a draft bill and parliamentary talks continued.
The progress of casinos will be key to the economic pledges of the country’s president, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, as the region looks to continue to elevate its economic growth.
At the heart of the progress is positive news for the regional gaming sector, with the reported agreement of a 17 per cent tax rate.
It continues Thavisin’s strengthened focus on boosting tourism by increasing its appeal to Europeans.
Furthermore, the bill and the tax rate looks to be vital in tackling the black market and halting its growth as well as enabling the Thai casino industry to compete with Singapore and Macau.
Concluding the decision, discussions are set to take place on March 28 as details of the plan are further deliberated over, with an eye to making final progress for the sector in Thailand.
Details stem from the report which was formed by the previous government and took into account the potential economic impact of casinos as well as the social consequences that could come with the growth of the market.
156
Further details have been disclosed regarding Entain’s legal challenge against Sports Entertainment Media BV and related parties involved in valuing its Netherlands subsidiary, BetCity.nl.
According to CasinoNieuws, documents from the High Court of England and Wales state that the FTSE100 gambling group’s board believe BetCity.nl’s value is €68m to €156m less than the previously agreed deal with Sports Entertainment BV.
As a result, Entain is pursuing a legal challenge as it accuses Sports Entertainment BV and the company’s founders, the Singels family, of concealing information related to regulatory infringements at BetCity.
Entain agreed terms to acquire BetEnt BV, the Dutch operator of BetCity.nl, in 2022 for a valuation of €850m. The initial deal terms resulted in the group acquiring the shareholding of Sports Entertainment Media BV for a cash offer of €300m.
Performance reward incentives of €550m were included in the deal, elevating the offer above the €800m mark on the condition that BetCity produced 10x EBITDA for the 2023 financial year.
However, last year, BetCity received a €3m fine for significant failures to comply with the Netherlands’ Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Prevention Act – violations which Entain believes were concealed by Sports Entertainment Media BV and associated parties.
Entain, being represented by Clifford Chance, justified the price paid for BetCity as it was acquiring a podium-placed operator in the Dutch gambling market, but they estimate the damages caused by the operator’s previous owners’ breached deal covenants to be in the range of €68m to €156m.
The court document stated: “Without prejudice to the matters set out above, the Claimant’s most recent good faith calculation is that the damage it has suffered from the Defendants’ breach of warranty totals between €68 million and €156 million, though as set out below, an alternative assessment method produces a range of potential losses of €58 million to €124 million.
“This is the case whether the Claimant’s loss is assessed at the date of the SPA, or at the date of Completion.”
888
888 has been cleared by the UK Gambling Commission of any regulatory penalties following a review of its licence.
A review of 888’s licence was initiated by the UKGC after FS Gaming sought to acquire a stake in the gambling company last June.
FS Gaming took a 6.5 per cent stake in the firm during that month, with a subsequent proposal centred around the potential appointments of Lee Feldman, Kenny Alexander and Stephen Morana as Chair, CEO and CFO, respectively.
However, with each previously holding senior leadership positions at GVC Holdings, the now rebranded Entain, 888 was in communication with the UKGC about the shareholding and proposal.
During this period, GVC was also under an HM Revenue & Customs investigation into the company’s former Turkish business, which concluded in December last year with a £585m settlement from Entain with the Crown Prosecution Service.
888 terminated its discussions with FS Gaming in July and ended up going in a different direction with its senior team appointments, hiring Per Widerström as CEO in October.
A review of 888’s licence was commenced by the Commission shortly after the operator ended talks with FS Gaming. This review has now concluded with no penalties or further action necessary.
5
The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation has announced that the gross gaming revenue remittance rate for online and on-site betting platforms will be decreased from April 1 to help “attract more gaming investments”.
Speaking at the ASEAN Gaming Summit at Shangri-La The Fort, PAGCOR Chair and CEO Alejandro H Tengco stated that rates for online and onsite betting platforms will be reduced by an average of five per cent.
The gambling regulator is hoping that the reduction will encourage those who are operating illegally in the region to apply for a licence, which in turn will help bolster licensing and regulatory revenues.
“The remittance rates should then average around 35 per cent (of GGR), which is quite significant because when we assumed office in August 2022, the prevailing remittance rate was over 50 per cent,” Tengco noted.
“We have gradually lowered them so that by April 1, our rates will be at par with global industry standards.”
Tengco also listed three factors which can help the country’s gaming industry achieve sustained growth – entry and operation of integrated casinos, the electronic games sector’s performance and the benefits from the planned privatisation of PAGCOR casinos.
PAGCOR is projecting that the gaming industry will generate PHP 336.38bn (€5.54bn) in GGR in 2024.
The e-games sector – e-casinos, e-bingo, sports betting and specialty games – is projected to show strong growth and contribute PHP 61.75bn, while licensed casinos – Entertainment City, Metro Manila, Clark, Cebu and the Fiesta Casinos in Rizal and Poro Point – are expected to produce as much as PHP 256.63bn.
Tengco noted: “We expect gaming revenues to sustain growth this year and beyond with the increasing demand for leisure, travel and entertainment from both local and foreign tourists.
“We will also have at least one new IR opening every other year starting with Solaire North in Quezon City which will open its doors in the first half of 2024, followed by another new IR in Clark, with several more in the pipeline including one in Cebu.”
