iGB Affiliate Monitor March 2023 | Page 18

GAMING INNOVATION GROUP Q3 REVIEW

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Affiliate Monitor Gaming Innovation Group Q3 review
GAMING INNOVATION GROUP Q3 REVIEW
TWO PLUS TWO EQUALS
So , to what extent does the addition of AskGamblers add heft to GiG ’ s affiliate arm and what does it mean for the future of a business which is still very much split between its media arm and its sports-betting backend supply side ?
The basics of the AskGamblers deal means GiG will add € 17.2m of assumed annualised revenues to an already burgeoning profile in the affiliate space . As can be seen , GiG ’ s last 12 months ’ revenues for its media business was € 56.8m .
With a slice of bad accounting , adding AskGamblers ’ s 2022 revenues of € 17.2m pro-forma to GiG ’ s last 12 months revenues would mean the acquired business was worth about 30 % of total revenues of € 74m .
Financially , then , the deal for AskGamblers isn ’ t truly transformative ; yes , it adds more heft and certainly marks a step change in terms of revenues . But organisationally , adding AskGamblers to the mix of businesses will arguably be more important .
As has been discussed with Catena Media , the failure to execute on its M & A transactions was arguably where the company slipped up . But GiG ’ s previous record with acquisitions is much more impressive . At least eight deals between 2015 and 2017 – including the CasinoTopsOnline business – were welded together to provide GiG with an engine of EBITDA growth that has helped sustain the business as it proceeded with building its initially loss-making supply arm .
GETTING IT TOGETHER
Sources point out that not only does GiG have a better track record of making a success of integrations , it also structures the deals well . The AskGamblers acquisition , with only € 20m being paid upfront , means it could generate sufficient EBITDA profit to substantially cover the subsequent € 10m and € 15m payments that become due in the next two years .
It can also hope to expand the AskGamblers business , particularly in terms of geography where , as one source suggested , it was iGB Affiliate Monitor