Esports betting sector sees $30M+ in transactions
Sharpr is a weekly newsletter covering the intersection of esports and betting
Hi everyone and welcome back to another edition of Sharpr.
Remember last week when we asked ourselves if the games industry would have a fourth billion dollar deal for the fourth week in a row? Well, it's official, I guess. What’s the over/under on going five-for-five?
It’s been another busy week in the industry, with the esports betting sector in particular seeing more than $30 million changing hands. Let’s get right into it.
– Cody
In this week’s edition of Sharper…
LOOT.BET purchased for $15M
Midnite secures $16M investment
Ontario online sports betting to launch in Spring 2022
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Intema Solutions purchases LOOT.BET for $15M
Canadian esports and iGaming holding company Intema Solutions has inked a share purchase agreement with Livestream Gaming, owners of Curaçao-licensed esports betting platform LOOT.BET.
The deal, expected to close in February, is valued at $14.8 million, and will be paid in cash, Intema common shares, and a secured vendor take-back note. The news follows a letter of intent signed in May 2021 when Intema Solutions first entered into negotiations to acquire Livestream Gaming.
Intema will offer Livestream up to $3 million in performance-based incentives throughout the first 12 months of the acquisition.
Intema has committed to a minimum capital contribution of $6 million to Livestream’s operations over a period of two years following the closing date.
LOOT.BET will join Intema’s portfolio of esports holdings, including peer-to-peer wagering platform HypeX.gg and sports betting solutions company Generationz Gaming Entertainment.
LOOT.BET launched in 2016 under sports betting solutions company UltraPlay, and has since amassed more than 450,000 registered users, according to a May 2021 press release. The online operator has held a partnership with PandaScore since August 2021 to supply its esports data and of odds feeds.
The Cyprus-based bookmaker rarely engages in commercial sponsorships, and instead opts to focus on content marketing as a means to get in front of the esports audience. Most notably, in February 2020 LOOT.BET entered a social media partnership with the Better Collective-owned Counter-Strike news site HLTV.org that saw its branding appear in a variety of social posts and content series.
LOOT.BET offers markets on an extensive list of esports, including Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and League of Legends, StarCraft, PUBG, Arena of Valor, Quake, and more.
Intema has hinted at international expansion on several occasions, and was recently granted an Isle of Man gambling license with the intention to “white-label [LOOT.BET] to regulated gaming markets on a global scale.” Additionally, the company applied to become a registered operator of online gaming and sports betting in Ontario in December.
Midnite secures $16M in Series A funding
UK-licensed esports operator Midnite announced the closing of a $16M Series A funding round led by The Raine Group, a merchant bank focused on technology, media, and telecom. Existing investors, including Makers Fund and Venrex, also increased their investment in the company as part of the round.
The infusion will be used to fund several Midnite growth initiatives, including its sportsbook, “CashMode” (a skill-based players-vs-self wagering mode), and casino.
Raine Group Co-founder and Partner John Salter will join Midnite’s board of directors, while Managing Director Garret Gomes will become a board observer.
Raine Group has been investing in the gaming sector as early as 2008, with early investments in DraftKings, Jackpocket, and Mythical Games.
Midnite Founder Nicholas Wright tells Sharpr that fans can expect “constant upgrades” to the overall product driven by their feedback.
This includes improvements to its sportsbook UX, expanding its esports and traditional sports offering with more markets, and a new platform-wide loyalty system. Midnite will additionally launch “Arcade,” a casino and minigame experience on the platform designed specifically for the gaming audience.
A portion of Midnite’s funding will be allocated towards CashMode, which Wright says has been a “very promising” and “rapidly progressing” product. The operator will launch CashMode in the U.S. in Q2; the product will be available in approximately 40 states.
Midnite is licensed with the British Gambling Commission, and is pending approval with the Malta Gaming Authority. The operator recently held a soft launch in Brazil and soon expects to enter into the Mexico market through a partnership with an unnamed Mexican operator. Wright says the company is scaling up its licensing program and expects to submit two additional licenses this year.
Midnite was founded in 2018 by Nicholas Wright and Daniel Qu, a pair of gaming industry product specialists responsible for creating daily fantasy sports platform Dribble. The company claims it has “worked closely” with UK operator Sky Bet throughout the launch of the platform.
Ontario online sports betting set to launch in Spring 2022
Ontario will launch online sports betting on April 4, the Canadian regulator iGaming Ontario announced last Friday. Legislation will see an unlimited number of licenses available to accept bets in the province, though approximately 30 online operators are supposedly looking to go live, sources tell Legal Sports Report.
Single-event sports betting is a $14 billion industry in Canada.
Gambling research firm Eilers & Krejcik estimates Ontario sportsbooks could generate up to $450M in sports betting revenue in 2022.
The regulatory framework in Ontario allows licensed operators to post and accept wagers on esports events. One of the companies hot on the heels of a regulated sports betting launch in Ontario is Canadian operator Rivalry. The esports-first betting platform has submitted an application to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to become a fully registered operator of internet gaming and sports betting in the province.
Rivalry outlined its 2021 performance in a shareholder memo last month, citing a 600% year-over-year increase in revenue and 600,000 registered users.
🗞 In the news
Entain, owners of esports betting platform Unikrn, have announced a $133 million innovation lab called Ennovate, which will focus on developing sports and entertainment experiences in the “Metaverse.”
Esports Entertainment Group has promoted Stuart Tilly to chief operating officer.
Esports tournament organizer BLAST Premier has renewed its partnership with esports data platform GRID.
📈 By the numbers
Video gamers are up to 4.3X more likely to participate in betting, and up to 4.5X more likely to participate in iGaming, according to research from Entain.
Watch time across Twitch, YouTube Gaming, and Facebook Gaming increased by 21% in 2021 – an average of 653 million hours of gaming live streams were watched each week on average.
Approximately 87% of esports fans can recall at least a single sponsor within esports.
🎲 The lines
Call of Duty League: London Royal Ravens (-167) vs. Florida Mutineers (+120)
Call of Duty League: Boston Breach (-240) vs. LA Guerillas (+175)
LEC: Team Vitality (-200) vs. Misfits (+140)
Contact us
Have a tip, or want to just get in touch?
Reach me directly at Cody.Luongo@wagers.com or on Twitter: @Luongo_Pro
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