Bally's Intralot CEO Robeson Reeves once again promoted the marketing efficiency of the UK market during the company's Q1 earnings call — competitors reduced their spending due to the increase in remote gambling tax, which opened a window for Bally's to acquire customers. According to the PASA official website, Reeves believes that this industry contraction is the best time for Bally's to snatch market share at a lower cost.
Competitors retreat, Bally's new customer volume surges by 60%
Reeves revealed that Bally's online platform saw a more than 60% increase in new customer volume in Q2, directly due to competitors significantly cutting marketing expenditures after the April 1st increase in the UK remote gambling tax. "Gamblers always circulate between different sites, sometimes pausing for a while. What we are seeing is the retreat of competitors — so the cost of acquiring customers has decreased, but the volume has increased. But our technology is proving: when customers are ready to migrate, we are ready to catch them," Reeves described Bally's strategic logic — tracking the flow of traffic across internet placements, ensuring precise ad placements, and achieving the most efficient marketing expenditure. The UK remains Bally's Intralot's largest regional market, contributing 64% of the group's revenue in Q1, amounting to €172.1 million. The UK online business grew 10.5% in Q1 at constant exchange rates, with preliminary revenue increasing by another 11.5% in April. Reeves clearly stated that the UK is entering a consolidation period: "Smaller operators are exiting — which means the cost of acquiring customers is decreasing." However, he also acknowledged that this has led to a decrease in revenue per user (RPU).
Financial risk assessment will not constitute a significant risk but friction may foster unsafe gambling
When analysts asked about the potential impact of the Financial Risk Assessment (FRA) being advanced by the UK Gambling Commission, Reeves was calm: "Affordability measures are not a significant risk for us, as our players are more stable and continuous." He explained that Bally's platform itself is built on the concept of sustainable consumption — "If people can afford to consume, they can continue to consume. Our annual consumption per user may not be the highest, but looking at retention rates and stable growth, new customers plus loyalty concentrated wallets, this is the foundation of our growth." However, Reeves also warned of the friction risks that FRA might bring — "These frictions could cause user churn, instead fostering unsafe gambling," policymakers need to ensure players stay within the regulated market.
Evoke acquisition negotiations progress, June 8th is the final deadline
Regarding Bally's Intralot's potential acquisition of Evoke, the group's CFO Andreas Chrysos stated that both parties are "progressing workflows as planned," and last week both parties agreed to extend the original deadline, now Bally's has until June 8th at 5 PM (BST) to decide whether to formally make an acquisition offer. In the negotiations confirmed in April, Bally's announced considering acquiring Evoke through a full share combination at £0.50 per share. However, industry insiders are skeptical about Bally's full acquisition of Evoke — Evoke's FY25 post-tax loss reached £541 million, and it carries a heavy burden of legacy debt. Chrysos remained cautious: "I do not want to make any comments that could be interpreted as biased, we are satisfied with the current progress."
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This article is from "PASA-Global iGaming Leaders" gambling industry news channel: https://t.me/pasa_news
Original in-depth gambling channel: https://t.me/gamblingdeep
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PASA Matrix: @pasa002_bot
PASA official website: https://www.pasa.news
