Kindred gets licensed to enter Netherlands online gaming market with Unibet brand
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Online gambling operator Kindred Group announced Wednesday that it has been granted a gambling license by the Netherlands Gambling Authority (Kansspelautoriteit, KSA). Kindred's flagship brand Unibet will launch its Unibet.nl site in the coming days and a Capital Markets Day will be hosted on September 14.
The license allows Kindred Group to offer commercial online gambling and betting under the Dutch Remote Gambling Act as of June 8, 2022. In a press release, the company explained that the approval from the KSA follows an extensive process to secure Kindred's 20th local license and represents an "important step" in the group's ambition to increase its share of revenue from locally regulated markets.
"The Netherlands is a large and important European market and one that we look forward to operating in with a local license. We have been advocating local license schemes for the past decade, and are thrilled that our newly awarded license in the Netherlands will allow us to deepen and develop our involvement in the Dutch society, as well as actively contribute to a fair and sustainable gambling market. As part of our long-term ambitions and strategy, we are eager to provide a safe, secure and entertaining gambling experience for Dutch customers," said Henrik Tjärnström, CEO of Kindred Group.
"We are fully committed to establishing Kindred's role as a responsible, trustworthy and valuable gambling operator on the Dutch market through our flagship brand Unibet. Our corporate purpose to 'transform gambling by being a trusted source of entertainment that contributes positively to society' sits at the heart of our 'Unibet Impact' program which is solely dedicated to fostering a safer and more responsible online gambling industry. We want to convey entertainment to the Dutch society and are very keen on bringing the joy and excitement of sports to everyone," added Anne-Jaap Snijders, Chief Commercial Officer, Kindred Group.
Kindred will host a Capital Markets Day (CMD) on September 14 in London where a thorough introduction to the group's long-term strategic direction and the market entry into the Netherlands will be given. Senior management will present strategic areas and projects to enable growth and profitability in locally regulated markets. The company stated that
Kindred's licensing in the Netherlands follows what the company calls an extensive application process, including the successful completion of relevant audits. Regulatory headwinds in the market, which forced Kindred to withdraw until the new permit was secured, had an impact on the company's financial results.
In an unaudited interim report for Q1, Kindred posted total revenue (B2C and B2B) of £246.7 million ($307 million), down from £352.6 million ($438.7 million) in the comparable period the prior year. Gross winnings revenue (B2C) for the period was down by 31%, partly driven by the Netherlands exit: excluding the Dutch market, gross winnings revenue comparably declined by only 7%.
