Danske Spil 2019 profit reaches record high as revenue falls
Revenue at Denmark’s state-owned operator falls flat as lottery business falters
State-owned Danish operator Danske Spil has reported record profit after tax during 2019, with full year profit rising 9% annually to DKK1.9bn (£221m).
Overall revenue decreased by 1.6% from DKK5bn to DKK4.9bn (£570m) in 2019, with pre-tax profits falling from DKK3.5bn to DKK3.3bn (£384m).
Company pre-tax profit was buoyed during the year by the sale of its 60% stake in games development studio CEGO in July 2019, a sale which generated DKK376m (£43.8m) for the business.
The amount paid by the company in state tax increased to DKK590m (£68.7m) during 2019, while other related gaming costs shot up by almost 32% year-on-year to DKK331m (£38.5m) in the same period.
Company EBITDA rose by 12% during 2019, jumping from DKK2.3bn in 2018 to DKK2.6bn (£302m) in 2019.
Gross gaming revenue from the Danske Spil online gambling segment rose by DKK36m during 2019 to a high of DKK2.0bn (£232m), a rise of just under 2% on 2018’s figures.
In July, the business introduced mandatory deposit limits for all new players, leading to a decrease in revenue from the online segment for the second half of the year.
Danske Spil’s lottery business reported the biggest loss during 2019, with gross gambling revenue falling by DKK100m from a 2018 high of DKK2.6bn to DKK2.5bn (£291m).
Danske Spil CEO Susanne Mørch Koch hailed the firm’s record post-tax profit as a win for Danish citizens, with over DKK1.2bn being passed back to sports, social and cultural programmes across Denmark.
“Does that mean that we generally make more money than ever? Not quite. In 2019 we received an extraordinarily high revenue of DKK376m from the sale of our shareholding in the gaming company CEGO, which runs spilnu.dk,” said Koch.
“That money will not appear on our 2020 figures, and our new initiatives in responsible gambling will also have an impact on earnings,” she added.
In December, the Danish government revealed it would increase online gambling taxation from 20% of GGR to 28%, with effect from January 2021.
“New regulations included focus on protecting players further and together with the increase in fees on betting and online casino means the market is getting smaller and profits are diminished. But we adjust to that. All are best served by a sustainable and decent market for games in Denmark,” Koch added.
In addition, Koch used the company’s annual report to call for the further regulation of gambling advertising in Denmark, as well as the introduction of mandatory loss limits for gambling among all providers.