Kambi’s Q1 EBITDA jumps 10% despite slight revenue decline
Revenue slips 2% to €43.2m as supplier prepares for a “transitional year” on the back of AI-powered Tzeract’s first deal outside the Kambi network
Kambi Group has reported a 2% year-on-year (YoY) decrease in Q1 2024 revenue to €43.2m (£37.1m) as management pointed to the impact of PENN Entertainment’s migration to its in-house tech stack.
Operator turnover fell 16% compared to Q1 2023, with Kambi noting this impact was driven by PENN moving off of Kambi’s tech, initially with the Barstool Sportsbook before that brand was ditched for ESPN Bet.
The supplier did note that when excluding PENN from the comparisons, operator turnover was up 3% for the reporting period.
Elsewhere, the Stockholm-listed firm confirmed an EBITDA jump of 10% in Q1 to €14.1m with a corresponding margin of 13.3%, while operating profit slid 2% to €4.4m.
Post-tax profit remained stable, dipping 1% from €3.3m to €3.2m.
Operationally, Kambi powered the launch of LiveScore Group’s sportsbook in Nigeria and the Netherlands ahead of the upcoming Euro 2024.
Kambi also stated that it had a successful Super Bowl and March Madness and noted an increase in the percentage of turnover taken from bet builders compared to 2023.
Kambi CEO Kristian Nylén, who confirmed in January that he will step down later this year, praised the deal with LiveScore as well as product improvements as “pivotal”.
Nylén explained: “As part of these product deliveries, we have been integrating external content into the Kambi platform, enabling operators to enhance their offerings and deliver even greater product differentiation.
“In Q1, for example, we integrated virtual sports, an important and complementary vertical to sports betting, while more recently, we enlisted a third party to strengthen our horseracing product. With these deliveries, we strengthen our flexible and high-quality solution for partners.”
Nylén said now that the supplier has delivered these requirements, it will push forward with modularisation, including for the group’s AI-powered Tzeract solution.
Nylén commented: “This sharpened focus means we are preparing to provide modular Kambi odds feeds to those operating on their own technology and outside of our network.
“This means operators can, via a single API integration, access our full suite of sports odds, including those powered by Tzeract and Abios, enabling them to select their desired mix of sports, events and product types from a single source.”
Nylén also touched on Tzeract’s first commercial partnership, which was announced yesterday, 23 April, with kwiff.
He remarked: “As part of our ongoing modularisation strategy, yesterday we announced Tzeract’s first commercial agreement since launching as a standalone division.
“Partnering with kwiff to provide its leading bet builder product will enable Tzeract to demonstrate the quality of its product via an operator outside of the Kambi network for the first time, an important milestone in the division’s progress.”
Following the publication of its results, Kambi shares were up 5.4% to SEK94.00 (£6.96) in early morning trading on the Nasdaq Nordic Stock Exchange.