Evolution CEO Martin Carlesund said the growth in live casino was impressive given the tough comparative period, after the first half of 2021 saw “exceptional growth” for the segment.
“RNG growth of 1.8% year-on-year pro-forma is in line with our expectations,” Carlesund added.
Evolution CEO Martin Carlesund: “The road to success will not be straight-lined but the focus and ambition is clear and I’m convinced that we will reach our growth ambitions over time.”
“While structural efforts, such as the One Stop Shop and other cross sales activities are important elements, at the end of the day the key for improved growth is developing great games to all players.”
“The road to success will not be straight-lined but the focus and ambition is clear and I’m convinced that we will reach our growth ambitions over time,” he added.
Breaking down the revenue from a geographical perspective, Evolution saw growth across all regions. However, Asia stood out as the fastest-growing region, after almost doubling its revenue contribution year-on-year from €53.2m to €103.4m.
This made Asia Evolution’s second largest market in Q1, after the Rest of Europe segment (excluding Nordics and UK), which generated €108.8m of Q1 revenue. Year-on-year growth in this segment was just 4.5%, however.
The Nordics and UK markets each brought in €21.8m, demonstrating year-on-year growth of 32.9% in the Nordics while UK revenue remained almost flat, at a modest 1.9%.
The North American market also brought significant revenue growth for the business, generating €36.8m, up 70.4%, while the Rest of World segment grew by 79.6% to €34.3m.
The share of Evolution’s revenue from regulated markets remained consistent year-on-year at 40%.
“There is a continued strong demand for online casino across the globe,” Carlesund said. “In North America, we continue to expand all our studios, with Connecticut as the next studio to be launched during 2022.
“In Asia, we also continue to experience good growth, while the more mature European markets are, in general, in slower growth mode – some due to regulatory changes affecting operators. However, we still see growth opportunities in Europe.“Latam also offers good potential going forward and continues to develop with several markets in discussions regarding regulation of their market for online gaming.”
Operating expenses also increased significantly during the quarter, from €94.2m in Q1 2021 to €119.7m in this reporting period.
The increase in expenses was driven primarily by higher costs for personnel, connected to the launch of new tables in Evolution’s live casino studios, and the general expansion of the business compared to 2021.
Indeed, as of the end of Q1 the firm boasted a headcount of 14,341 employees, up from 10,226 in the prior year period.
$EVO the company that has grown Q/Q every quarter for so long they quit saying "ATH revenues"
Gotta think in years for something like this and you'll do really really well
Growing revenue/profits at 40%+ after Covid pull forward and trading mid-30's PE
Recipe for success here https://t.co/LpSwUgbOeg
— Fundasy (@FundasyInvestor) April 28, 2022
Evolution’s EBITDA margin in Q1 was 70.3%, up from 67.9% in the prior year period, for total EBITDA of €229.7m, up 43.4% year-on-year from €160.1m.
After accounting for exchange differences arising from the translation of foreign operations, the business saw a total comprehensive income of €178.2m, more than double the €82.2m recorded in Q1 2021.
The firm held cash and cash equivalents of €439.5m as of 31 March 2022.