Online revenues at William Hill’s parent company fell during the first quarter of 2023 as safer gambling measures continued to have an impact.
888, which has had a turbulent start to the year with the departure of its chief executive Itai Pazner and a record £19.2 million penalty handed to William Hill by the Gambling Commission, said that online revenues had begun to stabilise with growth in low-spending recreational customers offset by a reduced contribution from higher-spending players.
The news came as 888, which completed the acquisition of William Hill in July last year, issued its annual results for 2022 and a trading update for the first three months of 2023.
The company had already flagged up its 2022 figures, with pro forma group revenue down three per cent year-on-year at £1.85 billion and adjusted earnings of £311 million, up 15 per cent.
Total revenue of £446m for the first quarter was down five per cent, with the company saying that momentum in Spain and Italy and a strong performance in betting shops had partially offset falls in online revenue.
The company said the Cheltenham Festival had helped boost the number of active players, with an increase of 15 per cent during the meeting and all time highs for bets per minute.
Pazner left abruptly in February after more than 20 years with the company while at the same it was announced that 888 was suspending its VIP activities in the Middle East over failures in its anti-money laundering processes.
888 said it was making “good progress” with its search for a new chief executive with Lord Mendelsohn acting as executive chair on an interim basis. Chief financial officer and executive director Yariv Dafna, who had been due to leave 888 at the end of March, is remaining in his posts until the end of the year.
The company also said its internal investigation into the issues with VIP customers in the Middle East had concluded and that there was likely to be a £25-30m impact on revenues as a result this year.
Lord Mendelsohn said: “The combination with William Hill transformed the group and brought together two exceptional and complementary businesses to create one of the world’s leading betting and gaming businesses.
“The group’s financial performance in the period primarily reflected the extensive actions being taken to drive higher standards of player protection. While recent compliance issues in the Middle East were very disappointing, they have underlined the importance of our enhanced and proactive risk management framework.”
He added: “In 2023 we remain on track to deliver higher profitability as we deliver against our clear strategic priorities. Our clear priorities of integration, market focus, and deleveraging give us confidence in our 2025 targets, as we build a stronger and more sustainable business for the future.”
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