The Australian division of Stoke-based privately held online bookmaker Bet365 lost A$40.8m (US $38.2m) in its most recent fiscal year. Regulatory filings indicate that Bet365’s Darwin-based subsidiary has now cost its parent company $77m over the past two years.
Fortunately, that parent company is stinking rich, earning profits of £321m in its most recent annual report. The filing with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission says the parent has covered its subsidiary’s red ink via a loan that needn’t be repaid “until such time as there are sufficient cash flows generated.”
That day may not be too far off, as Bet365 Australia reported revenue of $29.1m in the 12 months ending March 31, a 278% gain year-on-year. The company also enjoyed an 83% rise in active customer accounts. Those 73k users wagered around $1.5b in the most recent fiscal year, accounting for about 11% of the Aussie online betting market. Around 30% of that handle was wagered via mobile devices.
Expenses also increased, including $12m on technology upgrades and affiliate commissions. Staffing costs rose 63% to $19.9m as the company’s payroll grew 15% to 210 employees. The company also reported “significant marketing expenditure” to establish the Bet365 brand in a fiercely competitive betting market. Bet365 originally promoted its entry into the Aussie market via a series of adverts featuring actor Samuel L. Jackson as pitchman.
A little closer to home, several Bet365-associated sites have been added to the Bulgaria State Commission on Gambling’s online blacklist. While Bet365 has officially applied for a Bulgarian license, the blacklist has been updated to include four Bet365 mirror sites: game-365.com, 878365.com, 365-808.com and 365-588.com. Other sites making Bulgaria’s naughty list include betklass.com, bookie-bob.com, mcbookie.com, videoslots.com, vinbet.com and Tabcorp’s Luxbet.com. To date, Betfair, PokerStars and Gala Coral’s Eurobet are among the few big companies to have been officially approved to operate in Bulgaria.
