Playtech reports 12% increase in full-year 2021 revenue

Gambling software company Playtech Plc reported a 25% jump in annual earnings on Thursday that also surpassed its expectations, and said it may have to write off some assets in Ukraine.

The London-listed company also said it was still in talks with an investor group over a potential takeover proposal after shareholders rejected a 2.1 billion pound ($2.84 billion) offer from Australia's Aristocrat Leisure last month.

Mor Weizer, CEO of the company, commented: "Our strong performance is underpinned by our B2B business, in particular the tremendous growth we have seen in the Americas. We have made real progress in the execution of our US strategy, supported by new licences, new launches and new partnerships, and we continue to go from strength to strength in Latin America, buoyed by new strategic agreements across the region. In B2C, the story is similar, with Snaitech continuing to outperform the market, achieving the position of the number one brand across sports betting and retail in Italy".

Brian Mattingley, Chairman, said: "2021 also saw us continuing to navigate disruption and restrictions posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, and now more recently with the tragic events in Ukraine. I would like to express our support for the people of Ukraine, and in particular our more than 700 Ukrainian colleagues and their families. We will continue to support our colleagues as best we can at this deeply worrying time.

Summary

• Strong FY 2021 driven by B2B online, particularly Latin America, and Snaitech.
  
  
• Financial performance ahead of expectations with Adjusted EBITDA of €317.1 million.
  
  
• B2B performance led by Americas with revenue growth of 64% at constant currency vs. FY 2020.
  
  
• Increase in reported post-tax profit driven by unrealised gain related to Group's embedded options in Latin America agreements.
  
  
• Strong Snaitech performance with excellent online driving Adjusted EBITDA growth of 38%.
  
  
• Continued strengthening of the Board with Brian Mattingley joining as Chairman on 1 June 2021.
  
  
• New Sustainability and Public Policy Committee to drive continued sustainability progress.
  
  
• Significant progress in 2021 and excellent start to 2022 underpins the Board's confidence for 2022.
  
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