Acquisitions of Dutch online casinos continue to grow
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4 Nov 2024 •
Reading time: 2 minutes The Dutch online casino world is changing rapidly due to a wave of acquisitions since the introduction of the new gambling legislation. With the sale of OneCasino to the Glitnor Group, the fourth Dutch online casino has now been acquired in a short period of time.
In 2021, Flutter bought the tombola, which has since left the Netherlands. A year later, Entain opened its wallet and paid no less than €300 million for BetCity.
Focusing on rapid growth and market expansion
This year, Betsson added Goldrun Casino to its portfolio for an amount of €27.5 million. Now it is OneCasino’s turn, although the acquisition amount remains unknown.
These figures show that the Dutch market is in the spotlight of major players. The new legislation that legalized online gambling has opened the market to foreign companies, who are now focusing on rapid growth and market expansion.
Key figures on the Dutch gambling market:
- Number of acquisitions since 2021: 4 (tombola, BetCity, Goldrun Casino, OneCasino)
- Value of acquisition of BetCity by Entain: €300 million
- Value of acquisition of Goldrun Casino by Betsson: €27.5 million
- Number of licensees of the Dutch Gaming Authority (KSA): 24 (as of 2024)
- Average gross gambling revenue (GGR) for the online market: €814 million (expected in 2023)
- Increase in players since legalization of online gambling: +20% since 2021
- Number of active online players in the Netherlands: approximately 1 million in 2023
Glitnor focuses on European growth with acquisition of OneCasino
The recent acquisition of OneCasino fits seamlessly into Glitnor’s European growth strategy. With brands such as LuckyCasino and HappyCasino, Glitnor is already active in Sweden and Malta, but with the acquisition of OneCasino, the company is also adding the Dutch market to its list.
Glitnor was previously in the news due to adjustments in its business operations. A year ago, the company was fined €236,000 in Malta due to shortcomings in its anti-money laundering policy, after which the policy was tightened. Now, with the acquisition of OneCasino, Glitnor is taking an important step forward in its ambition to expand and gain ground in new markets.
The acquisitions indicate that foreign companies are increasingly finding the Dutch gambling market interesting.