Kindred revenue rises 4 per cent in H1

Sportsbook revenue offset a drop in casino revenue amid Kindred’s US exit.

Sweden.- Kindred Group Plc has published its H1 2024 interim results, declaring corporate revenue of £635m, a rise of 4 per cent year-on-year. It said active customers reached 1.7 million, up by 12 per cent, despite the closure of its US business to focus on core markets.

B2C and B2B revenues were £615m and £21m respectively, with 84 per cent from regulated markets. Sportsbook revenue hit £137m on the back of Euro 2024 and a strong margin. B2C casino and gaming revenues fell 1 per cent to £179m due to the closure of US operations. Revenue in the Nordics remained flat amid new safer gambling and affordability measures in Sweden. Cost controls boosted H1 EBITDA to £133m and profits after tax to £76m. 

Group CEO Nils Andén said: “Building on our solid start to 2024, I am pleased to present a very positive set of second-quarter results for Kindred. We continue to demonstrate our resilience and strategic execution, which is reflected in our strong performance across our market portfolio. The vast majority of our top markets have grown year-on-year, which is very encouraging.”

He added: “We have directed efforts on improving marketing efficiency and focusing investments in markets and channels that are most likely to deliver top-line growth. We also see an underlying trend of marketing cost reduction related to tightening of regulation across all markets. This reduction, alongside improved efficiency, are trends we will likely see continue. We are confident this will not adversely impact performance, as demonstrated by our strong results, and instead shows our ability to utilise marketing spend in a more effective way.”

In June, it emerged that the investment bank Goldman Sachs had acquired 5.4 per cent of Kindred Group, becoming the online gambling operator’s third largest shareholder. The news comes ahead of Française des Jeux’s proposed €125m acquisition of the company, pointing to high expectations that the French lottery operator’s deal will go ahead.

However, there remains a significant risk of regulatory detailment. French authorities are concerned about the potential for antitrust issues, while the EU is investigating whether FDJ underpaid for lottery rights when it was privatised back in 2019.