Gamesys Group plc Q1 2020 Trading Update
LONDON (UK), 23 April 2020 – Gamesys Group plc (LSE: GYS) (the ‘Group’) announces an update on Q1 trading for the three month period ending 31 March 2020.
The Group is pleased to report a strong performance in Q1 2020, continuing the trends seen in Q4 2019. Total revenues increased by 19% compared to Q1 2019 on a proforma basis to £155.3 million, reflecting the strong growth in Asia and solid performance in the UK. Within Europe, Spain and Germany continued to make progress and revenues for the region as a whole would have been ahead but for the continued weakness in Sweden. The US continued the strong momentum seen in 2019 with healthy double-digit growth during the first quarter of the current year. The Group has made a good start to Q2 and although it is still early in the period, trends are so far broadly in line with those experienced in Q1.
The Group’s balance sheet is in robust financial health with a non-amortising, covenant-light debt facility which matures in December 2024. This provides us with a highly competitive cost of borrowing following the re-pricing announcement in January. Our cash flows remain strong and we anticipate significant deleveraging as we progress through 2020, which will bring incremental opportunities to deliver value to shareholders.
COVID-19 presents a unique set of challenges for every organisation. Looking after the health and wellbeing of our employees and players remains our priority. The business has in place effective working practices to ensure seamless business continuity during this period, including full remote access for employees.
With respect to our players, we have increased the resource and capability in our responsible gambling team to manage our growth in activity. We want to continue to ensure that players enjoy the entertainment we provide in a responsible manner and a safe environment and we have developed an increased awareness of player time and spend across all our sites through a combination of human and automated monitoring. We continue to remind players of the responsible gaming controls they can utilise and along with our enhanced scrutiny of player behaviour, this has supported a 45% increase in players setting up deposit limits since the lockdown began1. The community and recreational characteristics of our bingo-led sites has seen player engagement in chat rooms rise by 38% and a 10% rise in the number of non-wagering sessions across our UK sites1. In markets where regulations allow, we are also now providing 10 hours of free bingo every day in line with our ethos of providing a recreational and fun environment for our community of players to enjoy.
The unprecedented COVID-19 crisis means that families across the UK are now spending the vast majority of their time living together at home, with the result that some children and some of those that may be at risk of gambling disorder, may be watching more television, listening to more radio and increasing consumption of other media platforms. In such an environment, the Gamesys Board believes that it is prudent to suspend untargeted customer marketing and we have taken the
1 Calculated based on four week data from Monday 23 March to Friday 17 April, compared to the four week period immediately prior.
2 precautionary decision to cease all TV and radio advertising in the UK until current social restrictions are eased.
During this period, we will continue to advertise our brands online although we will also be suspending direct-mail marketing and untargeted digital advertising. Across our global footprint, we will continue to pursue an intensified responsible gambling strategy to ensure our customers remain protected.
We have also taken the decision to temporarily remove all the Jackpotjoy branding around our sponsorship of ITV’s popular ‘Loose Women’ TV show. This has made the sponsorship opportunity available for Women’s Aid, the national charity working to end domestic abuse. Gamesys Group has also donated £200,000 to Women’s Aid which is enabling the charity to increase its live chat capacity at this vital time. We aim to be able to continue to help to fund their essential work moving forward through our newly established Charitable Foundation.
Lee Fenton, Chief Executive Officer, Gamesys Group plc, commented:
“During these unprecedented times our main priority is the health and wellbeing of employees and players and I am incredibly proud of the steps we have taken as a Group to ensure that we are best-placed to do this. Our business purpose of “crafting entertainment with care” has never been more relevant and we remain committed to providing a fun, safe and entertaining environment for our global customer base to enjoy.
I am also delighted to be able to announce our support for Women’s Aid to help it provide such a vital service during these extraordinary times. Like all businesses across the UK and those within our sector, we will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation carefully and operate based on official Government guidelines until we are ready to return to a normal course of business.
The Group is in a strong position given our operational control of a portfolio of well-renowned brands and complete ownership of our technology platforms. We are confident that the business is capable of meeting the challenges in the current environment and continuing to thrive in the long term.”
