Record H1 gains for Kindred Group as customers return to a full sports schedule

Kindred Group Plc, which operates in the US sports betting sector via the Unibet brand, has registered record gains across its H1 metrics, following what it described as an ‘exceptionally strong business period’ in its latest financial update.

Publishing its H1 2021 interim results (period ending 30 June) – the Stockholm listed online gambling group declared period profits of $220.3, up 575% on 2020’s corresponding H1 results of $38.3m.

Though performance comparatives were set against the peak COVID-19 impacts of last year, Kindred revealed that it had registered a new all-time high in active accounts to 1.9 million during Q2 as customers returned to a ‘full sports schedule’.

The record customer activity saw Kindred record interim group revenues of $985.6m, up 48% on H1 2020’s $667.6m.

The positive headline results saw Group CEO Henrik Tjärnström declare that “Kindred has built a solid foundation for continued growth across all product segments”.

He noted: “I’m pleased to see yet another great quarter for Kindred with continued growth across both the sports and casino product segments. During the quarter, our business has performed exceptionally well with Gross winnings revenue of £363.7m ($507.7m), an increase of 55% compared to the same period in 2020 when the sports calendar was impacted by COVID-19.”

He added: “Our different product segments continue to show solid momentum, with the sports segment benefiting from a strong sports betting margin of 10.7 per cent after free bets in the quarter. 

“Meanwhile, the casino segment has delivered a record quarter with 18% growth compared to the same period last year, despite this being a sports-heavy quarter.” 

“This indicates that many of our casino customers remain loyal, even as restrictions start to ease across our markets, and is a testament to our customer experience.”

In its interim report, Kindred advised that the US, still in its early stages, remains a long-term strategic focus and one of the firm’s most interesting growth opportunities. 

“We see clear benefits of a diverse product offering with sports and casino both providing a foundation for future growth,” it said. “Competition remains strong, however, and we are taking short-term actions to strengthen our position. 

“This includes an update to our creative platform and marketing mix, and improving our campaign tracking capabilities, ahead of the start of the NFL season in the third quarter. We continue to work on our proprietary platform with the intent to use it in the US in the future as an integral part of our US expansion. 

“This will allow us to adapt and improve our product offering for customers more efficiently. Despite increased competition, and the reopening of land-based casinos, it is encouraging to see growth in the US compared to the same period last year.”