888 has reported a 165 per cent increase in half-year revenue to £882, driven by last year’s acquisition of William Hill.
Lord Mendelsohn, executive chair of 888, said the “strategic progress” made during 2023 “has created a fundamentally stronger business.”
Reported adjusted EBITDA increased 211 per cent to £156m, also helped by the William Hill acquisition. 888 said reported loss after tax in H1 was £33m compared to profit after tax of £12m in H1 last year, due to increased interest costs.
Pro forma group revenue dropped seven per cent, driven by compliance changes in dotcom markets alongside a “refined marketing approach and market focus,” 888 said. However, pro-forma group adjusted EBITDA rose nine per cent.
Lord Mendelsohn added: “I am very pleased with the progress we have made in the first half of the year as the group delivered against the plans we committed to at our investor day last year, while also successfully navigating business, market and regulatory volatility.
“We made very strong progress with the execution of our integration plan and we now expect to realise the full £150m of synergies in 2024, a year earlier than the original plan.
“Our strong cash discipline and higher profits also enabled a 0.5x reduction in our leverage. We have successfully delivered against our focused market strategy, changing the mix of our revenue and creating a more profitable and sustainable platform for future growth.”
Adjusted profit after tax dropped by 63 per cent, reflecting increased costs following the acquisition. And reported loss after tax was £32.5m.
In the UK and Ireland online segment, 888 said actives were up 10 per cent in pro-forma results but revenue dropped by nine per cent.
Although, there was a six per cent retail revenue increase and adjusted EBITDA was up 23 per cent. As for international online, actives were up one per cent but revenue fell by 14 per cent.
