Bally’s Corporation will cut 15% of its US Interactive division workforce as part of a restructuring plan to reduce losses.

The operator’s North America Interactive division consists of the Bally Bet online sportsbook, the Bally Casino digital brand and DFS operator Monkey Knife Fight.

Bally’s said the layoffs would incur cash severance costs of between $10m and $15m, to be incorporated into the company’s Q1 2023 financial results.

Bally’s Corporation CEO Lee Fenton said the business was “acutely aware” of continuing macro-economic conditions and had to “adjust accordingly” to the challenging environment.

In a letter to employees, he wrote: “Companies which take tough but decisive steps to effectively manage costs will be stronger and fitter for the future. We’ve reflected hard as a business to come to this conclusion.”

Fenton, who became CEO following Bally’s tie-up with UK gaming giant Gamesys, said the company had not achieved “everything it had hoped for” in the US market.

Bally’s CEO Lee Fenton: “The pandemic boosted our business and we continued to hire at full pelt. I now can see that we may have over hired in some areas, and I take full responsibility for that.”

“Our North America business remains an investment market, where the returns will be reaped but we can now see that this will take some time to come to fruition, so we need to manage our cost base appropriately,” said Fenton, who conceded the company may have over hired in some areas amid a boost to business during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This is an opportunity to reset the business, so let’s ensure that these changes, while made with an extremely heavy heart, put us on an even stronger footing, where we can operate with pace, agility, and focus,” said Fenton.

For Q3 2022, the operator’s North America Interactive segment posted a $22.7m net loss.

At the time, Fenton said Bally’s was evaluating its loss-making US online business and would look to refocus efforts where there was a clearer – and quicker – path to profitability.

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