SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Yggdrasil Gaming has further expansion plans for the UK to build on the slot developer’s strong start to 2016. The Swedish firm went live in the UK in Q1 and CEO Fredrik Elmqvist wants to see Yggdrasil’s games get a wider reach in the market.
He commented: “We are already live with six operators in the UK and there will be more to follow in the coming months. It is certainly a very competitive market, and it is still early days, but early indications are encouraging.”
The firm has reported a rise of 519% in its Q1 revenues YoY to SEK14.2m (£1.2m), bolstered by an increase in bet turnover of 1,085 percent YoY to SEK 3,560.2 million (£300m). EBITDA for the period reached SEK 7.9 million (£670,000) compared to a loss of SEK 400,000 (£34,000) for the corresponding period in 2015.
Yggdrasil is waiting for final approval for its Gibraltar licence with the aim to go live in Q2. Elmqvist commented: “As a company, we are growing extremely quickly, and this presents us with a whole host of opportunities and challenges. Our team had grown to 65 people by the end of Q1, up from 45 as recently as December. It is fantastic to see Yggdrasil emerge as such a desirable place to work for people from all types of backgrounds.
“We’ve managed to fill a number of key positions in recent months, including our first CFO and General Managers for Poland and Chief Commercial Officers for the new business operation in Gibraltar.”
He added: “The recruitment process has been extensive and we do a great deal of it ourselves. We don’t look to ‘poach’ talent from rivals or partners, which is important when it comes to maintaining integrity and building strong relationships within the sector.
“And on top of all of this, we are extremely selective. We’ve said no to a lot of talented, senior candidates recently because they were not the correct cultural fit for Yggdrasil. We can proudly say it is easier to land a place at Stanford University than it is a job at Yggdrasil.”
Looking forward, Yggdrasil plans to continue to develop BOOST, its collection of in-game promotional tools, which has become an integral part of many operators’ marketing strategies. Elmqvist added: “On that note – watch out for the commercial launch within our network of customers of the new in-game promotional tool, ‘Casino Cash Race’, during the opening match of the European Championships in June.”
