Codere to Refinance Debt EMEA
Codere has hired the Bank of America to head renegotiations with bond holders for a further two-year extension on debt terms as bonds have sunk to historic low
Codere claims to have liquidity in order to avoid the closure of its gaming rooms and bingo halls - for the time being
SPAIN OPERATOR NEWS
SOUTH AFRICA –Sun International has closed two of its casinos permanently with Carousel Casino in the North West and Naledi Sun Hotel and Casino in Thaba Nchu not reopening once the current lockdown ends. Both casinos have experienced escalating costs and falling revenues over the past few years. This, coupled with the economic effects of the shutdown, has left Sun International with no option but to close the businesses, it stated.
CEO Anthony Leeming said that the added financial burden of the lockdown was a factor. “The inevitable financial burden it placed on us has impacted on our ability to continue subsidising under-performing properties,” Mr. Leeming said. “It was within this construct that we took the extremely difficult decision to permanently close both properties. Naledi has run at a loss for several years, while the Carousel too has incurred losses for some time. We previously made every effort to turn both businesses around, but these efforts have not achieved the desired results.”
UK – Magellan Robotech, B2B arm of Stanleybet Group, has appointed Domenico Vacchiano who has joined the company as Head of Technology. He has relocated to Liverpool where the
company employs 100 engineers and technicians from more than 15 different countries. Domenico is a Technical Architect with more than 20 years of experience with proven leadership and management skills.
EMEA – The European Casino Association has announced the appointment of Hermann Pamminger as its new Secretary General. Mr. Pamminger has worked in the gambling sector for
more than 25 years.
ECA Chairman Per Jaldung said: “We are confident that Hermann’s many years of experience in the international gambling industry will be an asset for the ECA, especially in these difficult times. Hermann is well known in the industry, has been PR Coordinator and a Senior Advisor to the ECA for many years and knows the legal and regulatory opportunities as well as challenges of our business inside out.”
The ECA also announced the postponement of its Industry Forum 2020 and General Assembly (planned in Baden, Austria from June 23-26). The new dates are yet to be confirmed. In addition, the European Dealer Championship, which had been due to take place at the end of April in Monte Carlo, has been postponed to November 16-19, 2020.
P18 NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE / MARKET DATA
Codere has hired the Bank of America to head renegotiations with bond holders for a further two-year extension on debt maturity terms as bonds have sunk to historic levels. However Codere claims to have liquidity in order to avoid the closure of its gaming rooms and bingo halls for now. Sources familiar with the talks in the meeting, said that Codere's administrators analysed the company's cash situation, hit by the forced closure of its establishments, including those in Spain, Italy, Uruguay, Argentina, Colombia and Mexico. Consequently, its only income comes from its online business, which is also suffering a sharp decline in activity due to the cancellation of sporting events.
Given this situation, Codere agreed to contract Bank of America to negotiate with investors the extension for two years, until 2023, the extension on debt maturity terms of €900m that initially expires in just over a year. Tese bonds, which a little more than a month ago were trading at €90 cents, have fallen to €35 cents. At the end of last month the US rating agency Moody's downgraded Codere's credit rating from 'B3' (medium grade, with some speculative elements and moderate credit risk)
Operator responds to call from All Party Group to limit bets
UK
Videoslots.com has reiterated its commitment to responsible gambling after enforcing mandatory loss limits for all its UK customer base. Te additional safety measures are designed to help protect players during the pandemic and keep the Videoslots experience safe, fair and fun.
Videoslots, which is licenced by the UK Gambling Commission, has implemented changes across all accounts within the territory. Players are required to set their monthly loss limits before placing their first bets on their favourite games. It will take seven days for players to be able to change their loss limits. During the seven-day period, these players will be contacted by
to 'Caa1', (rated as poor quality and a very high credit risk). Moody’s justified its decision on the basis of the economic impact on the gaming company of COVID-19 which has caused the closure of its gaming rooms throughout Europe and Latin America.
"As a result, cash flows and liquidity are expected to materially weaken and given the currently more difficult market conditions, the refinancing risk associated with debt maturities in 2021 has increased significantly," explained an agency analyst. In addition to the impact of the pandemic on the gaming sector in general, the rating agency warns of Codere's "weak" liquidity situation, with a total of €142m in cash as of March 23, of which they were restricted approximately to €30m.
Codere has presented a temporary employment regulation file (ERTE) for 69 per cent of its workforce and is working on a number of scenarios to reopen its establishments as soon as possible. An ERTE allows Spanish businesses to suspend employment contracts or reduce staff hours indefinitely due to ‘force majeure’ circumstances, while applying for the state to pay a portion of employee wages.
Videoslots responsible gambling team.Te move follows an appeal from the APPG – All Party Parliamentary Group, which sent a letter to the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) urging operators to limit betting to a daily cap of £50. Tis was to protect the financial and mental well-being of players following the shutdown of land-based operations and the strong likelihood that the iGaming market will grow. Te letter stated, “we urge you to; introduce this £50 a day maximum spend; to suspend the facility for individuals to open extra accounts when they already have an account; and to increase interventions to protect gamblers.
Alexander Stevendahl, CEO at
Videoslots.com, said: “Playing on
Videoslots.com should be a safe and enjoyable form of entertainment and that’s why we’ve made loss limits mandatory.
Malta
Betsoft Gaming has announced a partnership agreement with Salsa Technology that will see the developer integrate a selection of its top-performing titles onto Salsa Technology’s Game Aggregation Platform (GAP). Betsoft has recently launched a number of cinematic animated slot titles and games available within the deal will include Monster Pop, Spring Tails and Total Overdrive. Betsoft’s Sales Executive, Francesca Raniolo, commented: "Partnering with Salsa Technology, who are recognised leaders in the Latin-American market, as well as Spain and Portugal, is another step forward for us in our global strategy." Salsa Technology’s Global Business Development Manager, Victor Arias, added: "Betsoft Gaming has been a leader in the slots’ development space for years and we cannot wait to add these new games to our GAP offering."
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