Supreme Ventures achieves highest revenue on 20th anniversary

David Rose – Jamaica Observer – April 23, 2021

Even against the backdrop of COVID-19 and the entry of Izizzi and Luck Play to the gaming market during its first quarter ending March 31, 2021, Supreme Ventures Limited (SVL) saw a 33 per cent increase of gross ticket sales to $23.8 billion in its 20th anniversary year. This while managing to achieve a record total gaming income of $10.7 billion which was six per cent higher than the prior quarter.

SVL’s core non-fixed odd wagering games, horse racing and pin codes segments recorded 17 per cent growth to $6.69 billion compared to its fixed odd wagering games which registered a nine per cent decline to $4.02 billion.

Despite this sharp uptick in business from the revenue standpoint, the company’s gross profit took a 12 per cent hit to $2.02 billion as the group increased payouts for its games during the quarter with its iconic Cash Pot game now rewarding $305 for a $10 bet compared to the $260 at the end of 2020.

Direct costs rose 11 per cent to $8.69 billion during the quarter. Even with this increase in costs, the SVL report noted that there was a 40 per cent increase in prizes paid amounting to $18.3 billion, which they viewed as putting more money back into the hands of the consumer to help drive the overall economy.

The lottery segment reported a 47 per cent decline, its overall result to $629.87 million while sports betting and pin codes contributed $245.82 million and $46.22 million, respectively, to the group’s segment results.

Although SVL included horse racing and video lottery terminals as part of its sports betting segment, Gary Peart, executive chairman of SVL, noted that the company’s horse racing business was on track to record profitability while being driven by mobile platforms. Sports betting achieved a record 50 per cent increase in gaming income to $3 billion.

With selling, general, and administrative costs two per cent higher at $1.32 billion along with lower other income, SVL’s operating profit declined by 29 per cent to $752.71 million. Through positive finance costs and lower taxes, SVL’s consolidated net profit closed the period at $601.7 million with net profit attributable to shareholders down by 20 per cent to $592.26 million. The SVL report noted that this decline in profitability was expected due to the Government’s COVID-19 restrictions, higher lottery liabilities and introduction of competition. Total assets declined by four per cent to $14.9 billion while total liabilities and equity attributable to shareholders closed the period at $9.26 billion and $4.03 billion, respectively.

Source: https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business-report/supreme-ventures-achieves-highest-revenue-on-20th-anniversary_219884

Supreme Ventures takes more of Post to Post

Supreme Ventures Limited (SVL) has advised that it acquired an additional shareholding in Post to Post Betting Limited, which takes its total shareholding to 80 per cent for an undisclosed amount.

In 2019, Supreme Ventures Limited (SVL) which operates the largest gambling and sports betting network on the island, acquired an initial 51 per cent shareholding in Post to Post Betting.

The latest move raises SVL’s interest from half to four-fifths.

Post to Post offers gaming products including sports betting and horse racing in the Jamaican market under the Post to Post and Anybet brands with over three dozen locations across the island.

Despite COVID-19 and resulting reduced opening hours at betting shops, most segments of SVL performed well with $39.4 billion in revenue from $38.5 billion in 2019. The sports betting segment made less revenue but more profit in 2020 at $8.4 billion and a profit of $338.5 million. This compared to $8.5 billion in revenue in 2019 with a loss of $81.6 million the previous financial year.

The segment profit benefited from a change in format during the year to include horseracing and video lottery terminals as part of sports betting.

“This is due to a change in the chief operating decision-maker, the way in which the business is monitored including the reports used to facilitate management of the segments,” SVL said, adding that each area now has a general manager with responsibility for tracking performance against targeted objectives and reporting such performance to the executive chairman, Gary Peart.

SVL acquired Post to Post as part of its growth strategy to diversify its revenue streams from mainly lottery into sports betting including horse racing.

 

Source: http://www.loopjamaica.com/content/supreme-ventures-takes-more-post-post

SVL, JOA lock in historic $45-m deal

Supreme Ventures Limited (SVL) has locked in a major deal with the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA), which pledges support for the association over three years to the tune of $45 million.

The landmark deal will see the JOA receiving $15 million annually with a contractual start date of April 1 of this year.

The cash support will span the member associations that fall under the JOA, namely, track and field, rugby, netball and volleyball, to name a few, and will go to the development of sport for the duration of the contract period.

Chief marketing officer of Supreme Ventures Heather Goldson says the agreement is historic and will augur well for sports, especially during these challenging times.

“Our local sporting sector has been hit hard by the effects of the pandemic, but we are cognisant that even though sports have not resumed fully, there is still a need for the development of the various disciplines so we can be ready when the time comes,” she said.

Goldson said that the funds will go towards a heavy schedule of international meets, chief of which is the Tokyo Summer Olympics scheduled for July of this year.

Secretary general/CEO of the JOA Ryan Foster said the agreement has come just in time.

 

“This historic deal highlights the strong corporate social responsibility of Supreme Ventures and their willingness to reach our stakeholders such as athletes, coaches and sport administrators,” he said. “This partnership signals a tangible contribution of both organisations to the development of sport in Jamaica and the holistic development of athletes.

“The deal will provide more opportunities for athletes to participate at the games managed by the JOA and the ability to partner with a vibrant and innovative company such as Supreme Ventures to assist in growth of sport,” added Foster.

The agreement will have benefits for both signatories. The JOA will receive monetary support for its member associations as they strive to get back to the business of sport and international competition, while SVL will receive exclusive branding rights at select and agreed major meets within its member associations.

Supreme Ventures Fintech brings first microloan to market

Lottery Supreme Ventures Limited, SVL, through its newly formed financial services subsidiary Supreme Ventures Fintech Limited, is now rolling out its first microcredit product, a loan aimed at its 1,300 retail agents.

Starting with a $500,000 limit, the loan, branded as Evolve, is SVL’s first foray into the financial products space. It is being piloted as a small business loan that will eventually also become a personal consumer product. Full market roll-out is planned for the end of April.

The management of SVL says the facility is an all-digital financial solution based on an app developed by its credit risk technology partner Mo Technologies, headquartered in Bogota, Colombia.

Mo deploys technology-driven financial products throughout Latin America and the United States. The company utilises artificial intelligence to devise credit-scoring systems that integrate non-traditional variables into predicting creditworthiness and the probability of default by banked or unbanked potential borrowers.

Xesus Johnston, CEO of SVL subsidiary Prime Sports Limited, which has responsibility for SVL Fintech, says already a half of SVL’s retailers have been pre-approved for the loan, for which application, approval, disbursement, repayment, account management and communication with loan recipients are done online via the app downloaded to the phones of clients.

He said that at this point, pre-approval of some 650 of its retailers for the loan is determined from historical and other data fed into the platform, which then sets credit limits.

“As we move outside our retailer base, persons will be able to submit information online through the Evolve portal and we will be able to establish a pre-authorised lending amount and we will also be able to look at any sort of credit risk that is involved,” said Johnston.

“Evolve is not for SVL retailers only. It is part of our strategic thrust into Fintech. It is the first of many products that we will roll out that will put us in the Fintech space,” he said.

The SVL management says the product is being designed in keeping with guidance already provided to the market by the Bank of Jamaica, which is in the process of assuming monitoring and regulatory supervision for microcredit companies under the newly passed Microcredit Act.

The loan to retailers, said Johnston, falls within SVL’s three-year-old retailer loyalty programme, which also includes health insurance benefits partnering with Sagicor Life Jamaica, security packages with KingAlarm and Guardsman Limited, and telecoms packages with provider Flow.

“Financial inclusion is important and many of our retailers may not be able to readily access credit from banks. We have seen the growth of microlending companies across Jamaica for the last five or six years and we believe we have a unique selling point with a fully digital platform that allows end-to-end management,” said the SVL executive.

The Evolve loan is being marketed only by SVL Fintech and has not been extended to the suite of products being offered by McKayla Financial Services Limited, a microcredit outfit in which SVL recently bought a majority stake.

McKayla, which was acquired through SVL Fintech, is being operated as a stand-alone entity, although both outfits are part of the same sector.

Johnston declined to disclose the amount of the pool of funds made available to SVL Fintech for onlending but said the investment is being financed from a combination of capital secured from the market through a recent bond raise as well as from retained SVL earnings.

“We have substantial funds aside. We have access to both the funds that were raised and internal funds that we put aside. The raise was to facilitate new business ventures of which Evolve is one,” he said.

The roll-out of the loan product is still in the pilot phase, according to the Prime Sports CEO, who adds that adjustments to the product, including the loan ceiling, were possible before its wider market roll-out.

Source: https://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/business/20210321/supreme-ventures-fintech-brings-first-microloan-market

Supreme Ventures holds cash for acquisitions

Supreme Ventures Limited indicates that cash holdings, which have almost doubled year-over-year, will be used to support the company’s acquisition goals.

The group generated positive cash flows from operations of $3.67 billion to close December 31, 2020, with a balance of $6.26 billion representing an increase of 74.13 per cent over the prior year.

In addition to cash provided by normal operations, the group increased third-party loans by $3.50 billion, primarily to assist in the funding of acquisitions.

With its financial year closed on December 31, 2020, SVL reported net profits of $2.42 billion, representing a decline of $52.69 million (two per cent less) over the prior year.

Profits issued from gross gaming income of $39.36 billion, represented an increase of $843.89 million, or 2.19 per cent over 2019.

Direct costs amounted to $30.61 billion or 0.02 per cent lower than the prior year.

Total winnings for the year to customers amounted to $52.02 billion, an increase of 2.46 per cent in 2019.

Chairman Gary Peart stated, “SVL continues to leverage its fixed distribution network by investing in new complementary businesses and product lines.”

He outlined that 2021 will see the advent of new financial services and related transactional product offerings which will further benefit the retail network and the main operations.

During the year, SVL acquired the assets of Champion Gaming Limited amounting to $1.5 billion.

The chairman said that “the buildout of the agent network in Guyana remains a key area of focus and we have seen significant strides in building out the base to support the accelerated growth of the business in tandem with the expected economic growth in the country.”

“Supreme’s focus on digitisation and improving the mobile offering for lotteries, sports betting and horse racing continues to be seen as an area of opportunity to enhance the customer experience and the ease of doing business,” Peart stated.

SVL said even before COVID-19, it was managing costs and has implemented significant cost savings initiatives while continuing to invest in the buildout of the company’s infrastructure.

“We have become more agile in our ability to meet customer and stakeholder requirements and have improved communications within our retail network,” directors stated.

Total assets increased at year-end 2020 by $6.11 billion to $15.53 billion.

Directors outlined that the major increase is attributable to the acquisition of the assets of Champion Gaming Limited in January 2020, deposits on gaming equipment and the net proceeds of the corporate bond issued in the 4th quarter.

It was noted that, despite COVID-19 and resulting closures in the Sports Betting segment, all segments performed creditably in comparison to the previous financial year, reflecting increases of 4.51 per cent.

The Lotteries and PINs segments earned $4.44 billion, an increase of 26.02 per cent over the prior year.

Source: https://www.loopjamaica.com/content/supreme-ventures-holds-cash-acquisitions