SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Raketech Plc has delivered on elevated targets for 2023, bolstered by the expansion of its media network and partnerships.
Publishing its Q4 trading results this morning, the Nasdaq OMX-listed igaming media group registered period revenues of €22.7m, up 45% on Q4 2022 comparatives of €15.8m.
Headline growth was credited to a threefold jump in sub-affiliate income totaling €11.4m (50% of period revenues), attributed to the growth of contracts and partnerships in the group’s primary platforms of the Raketech Network and AffiliationCloud.
The growth in sub-affiliate income offset a decline in Raketech’s Q4 marketing revenue share to €9.6m (Q4 2022: €10.3m), reflecting a period of adjustments in Sweden, impacting the performance of Swedish online casino assets.
Meanwhile, in North America, Raketech reports that revenues were maintained at €2.2m – in which management will implement a new strategy for its Tipster business, deemed to not be “progressing in line with expectations.”
KPI growth saw Raketech underline the enhancements of its primary networks as new depositing customers (NDCs) increased by 45% to 76,000.
Q4 accounts saw Raketech register direct expenses of €11.3m (Q4 2022: €4.4m), “largely driven by increased activity of sub-affiliation contracts,” as period EBITDA stood at €6.6m (Q4 2022: €6m).
On a yearly basis, FY2023 revenues amounted to €77m (FY2022: €52m), in line with the updated guidance from July as Raketech hit its upward projection of FY2023 EBITDA of €23m (FY2022: €20m).
Concluding year trading, Raketech booked a special items expense of €18m related to the earn-out of its acquisition of Casumba Media properties initiated in 2019. Direct expenses for FY2023 doubled to €33m (FY2022: €15m), as Raketech declared operating profits of €11.6m, down 6% on FY2022 results of €12.4m.
Entering 2024, the board of Raketech expects a corporate EBITDA of €24m-€26m – as “free cash flow is estimated to amount to €22m-€24m before cash settlements of the Casumba earn-out of €18.3m this year.”
Further directives see Raketech’s board continue its search for a new Chief Executive, following the departure of Oskar Mühlbach at the close of 2023 trading.
Interim CEO Johan Svensson cited: “This result serves as a solid platform for the coming year, where we will focus on identifying new markets, evaluating expansion options, assessing new partnerships, and focusing on business growth. I am fully committed to driving additional value for our company.”
