Trannel, which is behind gaming sites Unibet, Mariacasino, Storspiler and Bingo, will pull out of Norway by the end of 2023 after a long battle with the Swedish Lottery Authority.
This appears from the company’s third quarter report.
In 2019, the Swedish Lottery Authority issued a decision to stop illegal gambling offers offered by Trannel without a license in Norway. Trannel is owned by Kindred Group and registered in Malta.
The Oslo District Court ruled in June 2022 that the decision was valid, but the company appealed the ruling. On 14 September 2022, the Norwegian Lottery Authority decided to adopt a decision on mandatory fines of NOK 1.2 million per day if the betting offer does not expire.
On the other hand, Kindred appealed the mandatory fine. Neither the Lottery Board nor the Department for Culture and Equality accepted the complaint. On June 1, the Court of Appeal in Borgarting issued a ruling in the appeal case against the state, with Tranel losing on all points.
The game is over in the USA
Kindred will also withdraw from the US market by the end of the second quarter of 2024. The company says it will focus on core areas to ensure growth in its operations, as well as cost-effective measures that will result in a reduction of more than 300,000 people. employees in 2024
The company is currently present in several US states, including Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Arizona and Washington State, as well as in Ontario in Canada.
Kindred expects the change to result in total annual savings of approximately $50 million.
The cost-cutting measures announced today are necessary and decisive. Although it is never desirable to inform valued colleagues about a downsizing, this puts us in a stronger position to ensure the long-term growth of Kindred across our core locally regulated areas, says Acting Managing Director Niels Anden.
sale?
Andén has served as interim CEO of Kindred since Henrik Tjärnström resigned in May. Before that, Andin was Commercial Director.
It was Tjärnström who initiated the strategic review at the turn of the year. This came after Kindred reported a year-on-year decline in revenue and profits in 2022.
At the time, Tjörnstrom said there was “no sacred mail” when it came to cost cutting. He said that the company is reviewing all areas to improve profitability.
While Andin said the strategic review was still ongoing, he hinted at the possibility of selling the company in whole or in part.
Andin said that the strategic review initiated by the Board of Directors is still ongoing and we continue to study a number of options to maximize shareholder value, and concluded by saying:
-The Board currently believes that shareholder value will be maximized through a deal with a third party.
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