The newly merged BlueBet and Betr business is already eying its next acquisition, while the new brand behind the entity is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
BlueBet and Betr’s merger – strictly it was a BlueBet takeover – was completed on July 1 with full integration of Betr’s customer base underway and expected in time for the upcoming spring carnival, with a ‘brand refresh’ to be confirmed imminently.
However, the combined entity has no intention of resting on its laurels with CEO Andrew Menz revealing this week it is already looking at building its presence via further mergers and acquisitions.
“I think we've made no secret of the fact that we plan to grow organically and inorganically in this market, chasing further profitable market share and getting to profitability at scale,” the new BlueBet boss told a quarterly earnings announcement.
“There are a number of potential M&A targets in this market at the moment. We see that there is likely consolidation in the lower end of the market and there are a range of potential targets there.”
Menz said that significant work was being undertaken to migrate Betr’s customers from the previous platform, which was hosted on the BetMakers white-label solution, to BlueBet’s proprietary technology platform.
That work means BlueBet, or whatever the company should be known as when it undergoes its brand change, would be well-positioned to integrate any future businesses, especially those from BetMakers’ platform.
“There's also a number of larger scale players in the market that are potential targets or potential interested parties in coming months and years,” he said.
“So as I said, we make no secret of it and the technology work that we've done for the better customer migration sets us up to really be able to maximise the efficiency of any M&A activity that we get involved in.”
Bren O’Brien
The wagering market in Australia has undergone a contraction over the past 12-18 months after an explosion in the numbers of smaller corporate bookmakers during a post-pandemic boom. A number of smaller players have been acquired during this consolidation.
However, BlueBet’s quarterly numbers point to strong growth within its turnover and active customers, even before the Betr merger, in a sign that the tide maybe turning.
BlueBet recorded a record quarterly turnover of $162.5 million, up 19.8 per cent on the corresponding period, while it also marked a record net win result of $17.7 million, up 18.8 per cent.
Bren O’Brien
The number of active customers with BlueBet, not counting those to be brought across from Betr, was up 14 per cent to 76,300.
“Importantly, through accelerated growth and a focus on profitability, the Australian business delivered its second consecutive positive quarterly cash flow with the business well positioned ahead of the Betr merger,” Menz said.
Menz said BlueBet has continued to innovate its product offering ahead of the merger. It also confirmed it had grown in all sectors of the Australian betting market on the corresponding period last year.
That comprises racing, which jumped 7.7 per cent, greyhound racing, which went up 24.6 per cent and harness racing, which leapt 13.9 per cent, while sports betting was up 26.9 per cent.
BlueBet’s results revealed that the racing codes make up 73.1 per cent of its turnover, with sports at 26.9 per cent. Mirroring what is happening with other WSPs, sports has grown from 22 per cent at this time last year, with overall turnover growing by $8.1 million.
Same-game multis played a major role in that growth, with turnover from that betting format up 52 per cent and bet count up 21 per cent. In the racing space, same-race multi turnover grew 71 per cent.
Bren O’Brien
“Our scalable platform, repeatable integration model and deeply experienced team means that we are well positioned to execute our organic growth plans, as well as to aggressively pursue further inorganic opportunities to meaningfully and profitably grow our share of the Australian wagering market,” Menz said.
BlueBet is the second publicly listed WSP to report turnover growth this week after PointsBet showed a similar year-on-year trend.
BlueBet continued to trade at 24 cents a share on the ASX, giving it a market capitalisation of $120 million.
