Austrian gambling monopoly to sell off international assets

The Casinos Austria AG group set European media alight Friday when a spokesman confirmed that reports that it was to sell off its considerable and mainly land international interests are true.

The reports originated from a Belgian newspaper which somehow managed to get hold of a confidential document outlining the Austrian gambling monopoly’s plans to generate around Euro 300 million by offloading all its interests outside Austria – at least 35 gambling enterprises across Germany, Denmark, Switzerland, Australia, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Georgia, Hungary and Palestine.

Company spokesman Martin Himmelbauer confirmed the accuracy of the report, saying that the Casinos Austria board of directors were of the view that timing for such a sell-off was right following the international division’s return to profitability.

Casinos Austria showcased an impressive turnaround in H1-2017 in its most recent financial reportage, which included operating profits up 34 percent y-o-y at Euro 5.1 million and a net profit of Euro 1.28 million (H1-2016: loss of Euro 1.17 million).

The improvement was attributed to more successful results from Canadian, Belgian and German subsidiaries following extensive restructuring activity.

The sell-off will enable the group to concentrate its efforts and resources on the Austrian-based business, which includes the Win2Day online division, the online and land sports betting enterprise Tipp3, Austrian Lotteries, and the WinWin chain of video lottery terminal facilities, all benefitting from the Austrian government’s continued exclusion of rivals in the local market.

Late last year the Novomatic gambling group, a major shareholder in Casinos Austria, took a run at acquiring control of the Austrian group in concert with the Czech investors behind Sazka. The attempt foundered when the Austrian Federal Competition Authority belied its title by nixing the proposal.

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