Kindred Group plc, the Malta-based legal sports betting giant, reported double-digit revenue growth in the second quarter of 2023.
Steady increase
Kindred – the parent company of online betting sites including Unibet -- had a particularly good first quarter. But both Kindred’s CFO and CEO resigned in May. Many wondered if the company would falter in the second quarter, given the potential disruption in leadership. With the release of the company’s interim report, released Tuesday, those worries were put to rest.
In the second quarter, Kindred generated GBP 307.3 million, up 29 percent from the same quarter last year. Underlying EBUTDA increase by 120 percent to GBP 55.7 million. Active customers grew by 17 percent, although almost most of that was due to the growth in its operations in the Netherlands.
The APRU (average revenue per user) grew 9 percent over the same quarter last year. Much of the improvement was due to a higher-than-average sports betting margin. Kindred’s sports betting margins after bonus bets increased to 11.3 percent, up from 9.3 percent in the same quarter last year. The company credits the popularity of its new Betbuilder product and better control of its bonus costs for the margin improvement.
Interim CEO Nils Andén was particularly pleased with the company’s overall margins. “As revenue increases, we see the true scalability of our business model. Together with the actions take at the start of the year to optimize our cost base proving to be effective, underlying EBITDA reached GBP 55.7 million, representing a margin of 18 percent or 20 percent excluding North America.”
Kindred noted that the April and May were particularly strong. June was a little softer, but that was mostly due to fewer sporting events. Also, Wimbledon landed in the third quarter this year. Meanwhile, Kindred is optimistic about the second half of the year. The company views the Women’s World Cup as an opportunity to reach more new customers.
“We are currently amid a great customer acquisition opportunity with the Women’s World Cup taking place in Australia and New Zealand,” Andén said. “Following the huge success of the Women’s Euros last summer, we see how Women’s football is growing in importance and influence. With the major leagues kicking off in August and September, we can look forward to improved activity towards the latter part of the quarter.”
Kindred has more than a dozen retail sportsbooks in the US, including locations in Arizona, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Washington. It also offers online wagering through Unibet in Indiana and Virginia.
