Each week, CasinoBeats breaks down the numbers behind some of the industry’s most interesting stories. In this latest edition, we look at a Gamstop evaluation, GambleAware research, “bizarre” Scottish restrictions, a Dutch fine and World Poker Tour sale.
1
The Kansspelautoriteit fined Malta-based N1 Interactive after finding that the group offered games of chance to Dutch players via the betchan.com website.
The regulator said that an investigation found that the N1 site was accessible from the Netherlands and that the region was not mentioned as a country in which online games of chance are illegal.
Furthermore, it was also said that there were various indications that the offer was aimed at the Dutch player, one such example of which was the usage of the word ‘Amsterdam’ as a bonus code.
Upon determining the size of the penalty charge, the Ksa said that “fine increasing circumstances,” such as no visible age verification taking place and inactivity fees being charged to players, applied.
At the moment it is not yet possible to legally offer games of chance via the internet in the Netherlands, however, that is to change after the Remote Gaming Act came into effect from April 1.
82
The first independent evaluation of the Gamstop online self exclusion scheme found that 82 per cent of consumers have stopped or reduced gambling since registering with the group.
The report by research consultancy Sonnet, based on surveys of more than 3,300 users as well as in-depth interviews, reported that 84 per cent felt safer from gambling-related harm, and more in control of their gambling, after registering with Gamstop.
Eight out of ten (80 per cent) said that the self-exclusion scheme had delivered on their intended outcomes, whether they wanted to stop gambling completely, reduce their gambling or simply to take a short break.
Further findings included 77 per cent feeling more in control of their personal or household finances, 72 per cent reporting improvements in their levels of anxiety and stress, 63 per cent enjoying an improvement in the quality of their family relationships, 60 per cent finding that they were better able to focus at work, and 40 per cent consuming less alcohol.
105
Allied Esports Entertainment confirmed the long-protracted completion of the sale of the entities comprising the World Poker Tour, to Element Partners.
As previously announced, the purchase price of the transaction totaled $105m and included 100 per cent of the outstanding capital stock of each of the legal entities that collectively operated or engaged in the company’s poker-related business and assets.
The transaction was approved at a special meeting of the Allied Esports Entertainment’s stockholders on July 1, 2021.
35.6
GambleAware commissioned research found that bank customer and transactional data can offer valuable insights into the success of gambling blocking tools, and also provide unique profiles of gamblers.
The reports, produced by the behavioural insights team, analysed behavioural datasets in a bid to understand whether they could be used to build a clearer picture of the ways in which people gamble, identify possible harms, and eventually inform prevention, treatment, and support responses.
The research analysed bank transactional data from Monzo and HSBC, and aimed to shed new light on what these datasets can, and cannot, tell us about gambling behaviour.
Of those using the gambling blocker of the former, it was found that in the week before gamblers activated the block, their average daily gambling spend tripled
Specific profiles of gamblers were also revealed by the research, such as that gamblers had less money on average in their Monzo internal saving pots than non-gamblers, or that gamblers ranked ‘Very Concerning’ by HSBC had on average 35.6 gambling transactions per month, compared to 15.6 in those ranked ‘Concerning’, and just 1.2 in the ‘Control’ group.
23.5
Bragg Gaming Group reported a continuation of the “operational and strategic development momentum” shown throughout 2020, as the B2B gaming tech and content provider published a Q2 trading update.
The group said that it expects to report second quarter revenue, pre-recent acquisitions, of €15m, representing a year-over-year increase of 23.5 per cent and a 5.7 per cent quarterly sequential rise.
As a result of this, the group anticipates H1 2021 revenue will come in at approximately €29.2m, with its full year performance remaining unchanged with revenue of €47m and adjusted EBITDA of €4m.
In the update, the firm said it is pleased with its overall operational progress and performance and, in particular, that of its two new proprietary games that were launched in Q2 on its Oryx Gaming network from its in-house studio.
700
The Scottish Government’s decision to impose a midnight curfew on the country’s casinos was been labelled “bizarre” by the Betting and Gaming Council.
Confirming Scotland’s move into Level 0 COVID restrictions from July 19, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the unexpected development which will see all of Scotland’s hospitality venues – including casinos – closing its doors at midnight.
The BGC emphasised that the move would be particularly “devastating for casinos” as it highlighted more than half of the sector’s trade comes after 10pm, whilst raising concerns over the uncertainty for the 700 men and women employed by Scotland’s casinos, as well as further denting the £30m a year the industry pays in tax to the Treasury.
33
Player acquisition and retention specialist Xtremepush raised $33m in growth capital as the group looks to accelerate its global expansion strategy.
The cash raise includes equity funding from Grafton Capital, a London-based growth investor in European technology companies, alongside a refinanced debt facility.
The Dublin-headquartered SaaS firm voiced an intention of doubling its workforce to 140 people in Ireland and overseas over the next 12 months, creating new roles across all divisions, including software and DevOps, sales and marketing, finance and operations.
