Bet At Home reports flat 2019 revenue amid core market changes
German-based operator receives record €3.2bn in stakes during the year as profit plummets
Bet At Home Group today reported flat gross gaming revenue (GGR) of €143.3m during FY 2019.
The German-based operator saw overall consolidated profit drop by more than 44% year-on-year from a prior high of €32.6m to €18m.
Company EBITDA fell by 3.8% year-on-year to €35.2m, a decline of €1m on figures reported during 2018, when EBITDA hit €36.2m.
The Düsseldorf-headquartered firm took a record €3.2bn in stakes during 2019, with reported total deposits of €54.8m in the same period. However, the total deposits figure was down by 30% annually.
The total VAT paid by the Bet At Home Group fell to €4.9m during 2019 from a prior 2018 high of €7.3m, as betting and gaming taxes reached €20.9m.
In addition, as a result of a fiscal tax audit, corporate tax back payments in Austria from changes in group transfer pricing, as well as corporate tax reclaims in Malta, resulted in a net additional charge of €13.9m for 2019.
Overall company marketing expenses rose by just under 4% to €39.8m, a rise which the company attributed to expanded activities in European sports including ice hockey, volleyball, beach volleyball and basketball.
During 2019, the Bet At Home site had a total registered customer base of 5.2 million players.
In a statement accompanying the results, Bet At Home said the lack of revenue growth was down to the loss of the Swiss and Polish markets.
“The decline in gross betting and gaming revenue compared to the financial year 2019 is attributable to the loss of essential parts of the Swiss market and the significant decline in the Polish market.
“A potential decline in revenue due to regulatory changes in Germany can currently not be estimated and is therefore not considered,” the company added.
Analysts Regulus Partners claimed that while the company had expected a downturn in results, the problem is wider due to the operator’s focus on DACH markets including Switzerland, Austria and its native Germany.
At present, 40% of the operator’s revenue comes from the German market, compared to 20% from Austria and 10% from Switzerland.
All three markets are experiencing significant regulatory changes, most notably in Switzerland, where international operators have been excluded since the passage of the Swiss Money Gaming Act.
Regulus Partners analyst Paul Leyland said: “BAH [Bet At Home] has proved resilient to significant changes to second-tier markets (especially Poland and Switzerland), although the Q4 2019 figures demonstrate that these are now starting to bite.
“However, BAH will soon face significant changes to its core market, with little traction elsewhere to balance this, in our view,” he added.