Kambi posts revenue down by 11% in “challenging” Q3

Sports betting services provider Kambi Group has reported its financial results for the third quarter of the year. For the period ended September 30, the company delivered revenue of €36.7 million ($36.9 million), down 11% from €41.6 million ($41.9 million) in the same period last year. The business further announced revenue of €108.2 million ($109 million) year-to-date, also below the comparable period in 2021, in which it delivered €127.5 million ($128.4 million).

Kristian Nylén, Kambi’s CEO, noted the third quarter is “always the most challenging” for the sports betting industry given a quieter sporting calendar, and this year was no exception. “It was also a quarter marked by growing global economic uncertainty and higher cost of living, trends which show little sign of subsiding any time soon,” he further pointed out.

Despite this, Nylén said Kambi proved its resilience once more, reporting operator turnover growth of 12%, driven by new partner signings and market launches. During the period, the firm expanded its partner network in the Americas with four new signings with ilani, Mohegan, Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort, and Ondiss. Also during Q3, the company acquired front-end specialist Shape Games, which Kambi calls “a profitable and fast-growing business” that will provide the betting solutions provider with “market-leading native front-end technology.”

Kambi’s CEO described the Shape Games acquisition as “a landmark deal” for the company at a time when the front-end experience “is a more vital part of the sports betting value chain” than ever before. “Having worked closely with Shape Games on various projects in recent years, I have seen first-hand the strength of their technology and the level of expertise they possess, and I am pleased to welcome such a profitable and rapidly growing business to the Kambi Group,” Nylén stated.

As for other Q3 results, operation profit (EBIT) for the period was €3.9 million, down from €14.7 million in the same quarter last year, at a margin of 10.6%. Despite this, Nylén said the company’s future looks “promising,” with Kambi operating from “a strong position” and ready to tackle the challenges the economic recession may present. “When also taking into consideration the recent start of the US basketball season and a World Cup still to come, we look forward to ending 2022 on a high before embarking on an exciting 2023,” he noted.

In addition to the aforementioned deals achieved during Q3, Kambi extended its commercial momentum with the post-quarter signing of Great Canadian Entertainment, one of Canada’s largest on-property gaming companies. Owned by Apollo Global Management, which holds a number of gaming assets, Great Canadian has the potential to become “a major player in the Canadian sportsbook market,” Kambi noted in a statement.

Going forward, the company continues its road to executing its modularisation strategy and revealed that its Bet Builder, which recently launched for NBA, has been identified as the first standalone module the company will go to market with. “Unlike our key competitors, Kambi’s Bet Builder was created as part of the core sportsbook, thereby benefiting from our expertise in areas such as competitive pricing, unique user experience and risk management, creating a compelling product for operators to integrate,” the company noted.

See Kambi’s full Q3 2022 report here.