Shortly after the announcement was made public, Gambling Insider caught up with Kambi CEO Kristian Nylén, who had plenty to say on a number of markets across the globe.
What’s your overall take on Kambi's Q1 results and how confident are you of maintaining this level of performance?
Overall, we are very pleased. Again, we are showing strong growth – not only in the US but growing our existing customer base. It’s worth mentioning both Colombia and ATG (Sweden) are doing very well. We think we have a very good position in the US at the moment and we expect that to continue.
In your Q1 report, you talked about the recent signing of Mohegan Sun and emphasised the impact of tribal casinos in the US. Have you had any talks with other tribal operators or do you plan to?
Oh yes. I would say a very large percentage of casino operators in the US are tribal casinos so obviously the tribal casino industry is a very big target for us.
In October you told Gambling Insider Pennsylvania and New York will be the next major US states to regulate. But what is your take on New York saying no to mobile wagering, given its success in New Jersey?
In my mind, it’s only a question of time. Unfortunately, it seems like it will take some time but it will happen. It’s only a question of how long it will take.
I think when it starts, there is no turning back. The public opinion around sports betting is very positive and most states need the tax income. So I think it is definitely going to happen.
Moving outside the US, your Q1 report mentioned Mybet has already launched on the Kambi sportsbook; have there been any early challenges or obstacles during that process?
Not very many. Obviously, Mybet is starting from a very little level so I wouldn’t say they are big contributors at this point. But that process has been very smooth and they are up and running already.
Staying in Europe, how has Kambi found new regulations have impacted the Swedish market?
It’s a little bit tough for us to have a clear picture of it because we signed a very major customer in ATG. We expected this would be one of the top four Swedish sports betting brands early on.
Obviously, that would have had some cannibalisation from existing customers, having other operators in the Swedish market. But, in total, I think the sports betting market is doing very, very well in Sweden. Our figures support that.
Last week, Kambi CCO Max Meltzer told Gambling Insider your expansion into Moldova creates a monopoly situation that isn’t a bad experience for the players. How exactly will Kambi going about ensuring this?
We will roll out the same products we have in other markets, which is a high-quality sportsbook product. That will give Moldovan players a very competitive and exciting product to use. Historically, the lottery products around Europe have been much thinner offerings than those of private operators.
On a final note and on a more global scale, what has Kambi learned about the regulated Colombian market since entering last summer?
I think it’s a fantastic market. We have a few very, very good operators in that market. The amount of players we have active is quite amazing. They are betting at much lower levels than in other markets. But the sheer amount of unique users makes it very profitable.
