Valhalla Can Wait, Norse Warriors Kindred, Betsson, Kambi Deliver Divergent Results in Q3

The three Norse iGaming warriors–Kindred, Betsson and Kambi–have delivered widely divergent results in Q3, which could be loosely termed: “The Good, The So-so and the Could Do Better.”

The trio of top betting brands, all listed on the NASDAQ Stockholm Stock Exchange, continue to keep the iGaming flag flying throughout the Nordic region, although only Betsson is still headquartered in its mother nation of Sweden. Both Kindred, formerly Unibet, and its offshoot Kambi, have relocated to the sunnier climes of Malta.

There the comparisons end, at least for the financial third quarter.

Betsson

Betsson, led by CEO Pontus Lindwall, has posted hugely encouraging record revenue of €200.3 million during Q3 (£172.94m), ending September 30 — up almost 18 per cent year-on-year.

The company’s B2B revenue was €45.1 million (£38.93m), representing around a quarter of fiscal action – considerably up from the €28.6 million (£24.69m) of the same quarter in 2021.

Similar positivity was reflected in regulated markets, which generated €71.5 million (£61.73m) for Betsson, up from €54.7 million (£47.22m), compared to Q3 2021.

Betsson’s casino revenue, up by over eight per cent, measured €135.4 million (£116.9m), while sportsbook revenue surged 45 per cent, year-on-year, to €61.9 million (£53.44m).

The group’s betting handle topped a cool €1.06 billion (£915.2m), almost two-thirds of it from in-play wagers.
After tax and other financial items, Betsson Group’s net income for the quarter was €32.6 million (£28.14m), up 16.1 per cent year-on-year.

Kambi

Meanwhile, for Danish-origin Kambi the fiscal picture was not quite as bright in Q3.

The B2B sports betting provider saw revenue fall by almost 12 per cent in Q3 to €36.7 million (£31.68m), with the hit being blamed, principally, on the recent migration of top US sportsbook DraftKings to its own propriety platform.

And Kambi’s growing post-pandemic operating expenses also took a large slice out of the cake.

Kambi’s EBITDA plunged by over 90 per cent, year-on-year, to register just €10.7 million over Q3 (£9.23m).

Total net profit for the quarter was €2.5 million (£2.15m), a like-for-like drop of 78.2 per cent compared to 2021.

“The third quarter is always the most challenging for the sports betting industry, given the quiet sporting calendar. And this year was no exception,” argued Kambi CEO Kristian Nylén.

“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.”

Nevertheless, five major signings in the last quarter, among them Great Canadian, were a bright development, stressed Nylén, as is the company’s innovative Bet Builder project, set to launch in Q1 next year.

Kindred

Kindred, for its part, lay somewhere between the “Good” and “Could Do Better” results of Betsson and Kambi, respectively.

It reported revenue of £277.8 million during Q3 (US$322.9m), down by just under seven per cent, year-on-year.

The decline was posted to the cost of relaunching operations in the recently-regulated Dutch iGaming market.

Yet Holland was still “exceeding expectations”, claimed Kindred CEO Henrik Tjärnström.

With 137,000 active players, spending around £400,000 (US$464,928) a day since launching on July 11, Kindred has already captured some 15 per cent of the online market in The Netherlands, he said.

“We are off to a flying start,” enthused Tjärnström.

Overall, Kindred’s revenue from locally-regulated markets was up to £215.8 million (US$250.82m), a significant year-on-year rise.
Yet the business still only made a profit of £25.9 million (US$30.10m), after tax and other takeaways – pretty poor when set against the £73 million (US$84.84m) take home pay of Q3 in 2021.

Like businesses everywhere, Kindred, Kambi and Betsson are looking forward to the upcoming boost of the high-spend Christmas period—and, of course, the FIFA World Cup.

But Tjärnström spoke for all when he cautioned: “The current geopolitical insecurity continues to create uncertainty across markets and industries, and we continue to closely monitor these developments.”

Valhalla, for the moment, will have to wait.