Credit card ban: William Hill in concern

The British bookmaker William Hill is concerned about his sales after the credit card ban. The losses could be over £ 10 million. The British sports betting provider recently published this forecast in his annual report for 2019. For William Hill, this is the next bad news after the negative developments for many bookmakers on the British sports betting market.

Negative surprises for William Hill in the annual report

It is currently not easy as a bookmaker or sports betting provider in Great Britain. the numerous changes in the law and increasing political pressure Economically successful business complicates on gambling companies operating in the country. This also applies to William Hill.

The dino among the well -known sports betting providers had to be in the recent past due to new gaming regulations Numerous betting shops closethat meanwhile Boysports taken over by competitor have been actively operated.

For William Hill, the decision was particularly To limit maximum use on sports betting events from 100 to 2 pounds of sterling, a bitter blow that had to affect the sales figures at William Hill’s stationary betting terminals. This is also why the expectations of management regarding the economic figures of the past financial year were low from the outset.

“In public, William Hill justifies the unpleasant financial year 2019 primarily with the new operational limit for sports betting events. But the fact is that William Hill is heavily indebted. The takeover of the bookmaker MR Green also presses the balance. The economic imbalance of William Hill is not entirely through no fault of their own. ”

In publish now Annual report 2019 It was revealed that the actual numbers are even worse than expected. Last year William Hill achieved a total of £ 1.58 billion. The year before, he was at £ 1.62 billion. This is a shock for the management of the sports betting company, because the 100 betting agency, which was closed after the £ 2-pound limit came into force, would have a more positive effect on the business figures.

William Hill with an unpleasant forecast for 2020

But that’s not enough. The 2019 annual report also dealt with that current financial year – and this is probably not very reason for hope for golden times. The reason for the dark prospects in 2020 is again a change in the law. This time it’s about credit cards.

In the UK, credit cards are particularly popular in the online sports betting business, much more often than in other countries. Since many British can or want to pay only with credit card on the Internet, it should From April 2020 again larger losses for William Hill at least give the wording of the annual report.

Because from next April it will no longer be possible to handle money transactions that are connected to online sports betting via the credit card. The reason for this is also one here New British law, which has already been decided and will come into force from April 2020.

How enormous that Substacration of the credit card ban for William Hill the estimated loss reveals. After the current extrapolation, profit losses from the entry into force of the law on April 14, 2020 in the amount of five to ten million GBP should be expected. The main responsible for the credit card ban for British sports betting is the UK Gambling Commission.

“According to the British gambling supervisory authority, credit card payments would be an increased risk of over -indebtedness due to gambling, since players would easily lose their financial situation through the payment model. The new law is viewed very critically in public. It is estimated that over 800,000 British will have to change their favorite payment method. ”

New strategic orientation planned

Since the legal framework in Great Britain in particular for William Hill no longer enables stable business, the bookmaker seems Align strategically completely to want.

The focus is apparently the US gambling market. Since liberalization-at least in a few US states-the United States has also become interested in European gaming providers. Ultimately, it is a market with economic potential in the high billion dollar area.

This project now even has the CEO of William Hill publicly confirmed. You also plan to expand the online sports betting segment. Here you can see the future of the market at William Hill – and probably the last chance to stabilize yourself economically.

“We move into a stronger position in 2020. Almost a quarter of sales are now generated outside the United Kingdom, compared to 15 % in 2018. We have made positive progress with our digital platform by using our specially developed platform in the USA and product developments in online business in 2019 have brought the market. ”