SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Sportech Plc has backed its ongoing transformation strategy and focus on cost management, as the London AIM-listed racing and wagering systems provider declared statutory profits of £34.6m today.
The much-improved bottom-line results see the firm reverse full-year losses of £12m recorded during 2020 trading.
2021 developments saw Sportech complete the disposals of its Global Tote business to BetMakers – Bump 50:50 business to Pollard Banknote – and the offload of its LEIDSA Dominican Republic lottery contract (recorded December 2021). Combined, the transactions generated the business a net cash aggregate of £47.4m.
Despite COVID-19 continuing to impact its venue clients for the majority of year trading, Sportech achieved a 32% increase in corporate revenues to £22.9m (FY2020: £17.3m).
The firm’s improved headline results were attributed to the strong recovery of its wagering unit which accounted for £19.5m of corporate revenues.
Gross profits from operations stood at £11.4m, a figure that matched Sportech’s FY2021 cost sales which resulted in an outlay of £11.4m.
Improved cost management saw Sportech shrink its EBITDA losses to £1.8m (FY2020: – £4m), a bottom line result that excluded the contribution of LEIDSA Dominican Republic contract earnings of £600,000.
Of significance, during the second half of year trading the company changed its listing’s domicile from the LSE main market to the London AIM – a strategic directive to help its long-term capital structure.
CEO Andrew Lindley said: “2021 was a transitional year for the business with the completion of a significant amount of M&A and corporate actions to reduce the size of the business and de-risk our shareholders’ investments.
“The business, although now small in the context of a plc, is tidy and fit for growth. The two divisions are right-sized for their operations and 2022 brings with it an attendant opportunity to garner new value for the group and its shareholders.”
