London Listed Company the Rank Group has reported losses of £93 Million due to its land-based venues being closed 60% of the time during 2020-2021 due to the pandemic.
Half Yearly Net Gaming Revenue Lost
The Rank Group who owns Grosvenor Casinos, Mecca, and Enracha reported losing half its yearly net gaming revenue from £629.7 to £329.6 a drop of £288.2 Million. Bricks and mortar venues saw losses of £67 million, 65% down on the previous year.CEO at Rank Group John O’Reilly said despite the huge financial losses due to the pandemic he is confident the company is making positive progress as they enter the new financial year, with operations now returned to normal.Not only has the pandemic and the closure of land-based venues caused a blow, but travel restrictions imposed at the time the lockdowns eased in May 2021 also played a role in decreased revenue. However, Mr. O’Reilly is confident with travel restrictions easing and tourists beginning to return, especially into London, UK operations will continue to grow.
Digital Operation Restrictions
Another blow to many companies operating digitally was the much stricter regulations imposed by the UK Gambling Commission, including affordability checks for customer protection. The UKGC, after evidence was presented claimed a proportion of gamblers could be at a higher risk of problem gambling during the lockdowns and are now required to carry out affordability checks on customers.Capital analysts predict around a 10% decrease in 2022 but by 2023 revenues generated pre-pandemic looking likely to resume. The Rank Group still has every confidence in its recovery and is encouraged by its performance after the pandemic restrictions eased. Since the restrictions eased in May, Mecca and Grosvenor land-based venues have resumed a weekly net gaming growth of £5.7M and £2.6M.