Retail

IGT has announced the sale of its Italian proximity payment business from its IGT Lottery subsidiary to PostePay for a total consideration of €700 million.  NYSE-registered IGT will directly sell LIS Holding and indirectly sell LISPAY, the two wholly-owned subsidiaries that constitute and provide its payments operations, which has established a prominent place in Italy. The sale price consists of …

Matt Hancock, the former Secretary of State for Health, has outlined his support for the horse racing sector ahead of the Gambling Act review judgement, as reported by the Racing Post.  Expected sometime this spring, the government’s overhaul of the 2005 Gambling Act aims to address major changes in the British betting and gaming industry, notably the rise of online …

Svenska Spel has been named one of Sweden’s top employers at the Magnet Awards, securing Gold in the Grand Prix category for Employer Branding. In particular, the state-backed sports betting and casino gaming operator was praised for having conducted ‘the most complete work’ on employer branding. The firm has attributed its success in the category to how it ‘highlights its …

The Danish Gambling Authority (DGA), Spillemyndigheden, has revealed that it blocked 55 websites for illegal/unlicensed gambling during 2021, the highest figure registered in a single year. As detailed in its ‘Report on illegal gambling 2021’, the DGA – in cooperation with the Danish Tax Agency – completed six searches for potentially illegal websites in 2021.  The Authority had to take …

The Spanish government has ordered state-owned companies to comply with a 2022 Budget Law order that will demand incumbents to drastically reduce their sports marketing and sponsorship budgets.  Enterprises such as SELAE, Spain’s state-run lotteries society and monopoly counterparts RENFE (rail networks) and Correos (the post office) can no longer spend more than 2% of their accumulated net profits on …

Grupo CIRSA has praised the ‘robustness of its global operations’ as the Blackstone-owned Spanish gambling business delivered full-year financial results above market expectations. Publishing its Q4 and full-year 2021 results, CIRSA registered group revenues of €1.11 billion, up 30% on corresponding FY2020 results of €843 million. Improved revenue results were maintained despite continued COVID-19 restrictions impacting operations across Spanish provinces …

Bookmakers in Ireland have voiced their opposition to the potential passing of a law that would prohibit bets on the National Lottery. As reported in the Irish Examiner, the Seanad will debate a bill today that would ban firms from offering bets on the outcome of the National Lottery draw, which has been available since its formation in the 1980’s. If passed, the bill …

BV Gaming, which trades as BetVictor, has been handed a £2 million fine by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) for anti-money laundering, social responsibility and fairness failings.  A compliance assessment conducted in March 2020 uncovered failings in relation to licence conditions and code of practice, including a group AML risk assessment which did not meet the expected standard and which …

Australian betting and gaming operator Tabcorp and Lottland’s regional subsidiary Lottoland Australia have been awarded 20 year licences in Victoria.  Both licences commence on 15 April 2022 and run until 2024, with the two companies permitted to provide Keno games services across online and retail verticals by the Victorian State Government.  ASX-listed gambling group Tabcorp had previously been active in …

The board of Flutter Entertainment Plc has confirmed that Michael Cawley has decided to end his nine-year tenure as a non-executive director of the FTSE100 gambling group.  Having previously served as the Chief Executive of Ryanair, Cawley has been a corporate advisor of Flutter since 2013, providing  guidance on the business’ transformative mergers with Paddy Power in 2018/2019 and The …