PokerStars owner made $1.1bn in 2013 revenues
Amaya, the operator's prospective buyer, publishes full-year accounts for parent company the Oldford Group
The Oldford Group, the owner of PokerStars and Full Tilt, amassed revenues of US$1.1bn (£640m) and profits before tax of $422m (£246m) during 2013, according to accounts published by Amaya Gaming.
Amaya, which is set to acquire Oldford and the PokerStars and Full Tilt brands in a $4.9bn deal revealed last month, made its target company’s figures public earlier this week ahead of a planned shareholder meeting on 30 July.
According to the accounts, Oldford’s revenues for the 12 months to 31 December 2013 rose 16% year-on-year from $976m while profits before tax were up 33% from $317m.
The accounts also showed that a total of $179m was spent on customer acquisition, up from $158m the previous year, while monies paid to affiliates reduced across the year from $43m in 2012 to $33m in 2013.
The figures put Rational Group second behind bet365 in the list of the world’s largest egaming firms. Bet365 today revealed it made £320m in profits during the 12 months to 30 March 2014 with revenues totalling £1.3bn.
Oldford, which is headquartered in Isle of Man, employed a total of 1,494 staff at a total cost of $160m last year, an increase on the figures of 1,352 and $132m respectively posted the year before.
Amaya also published a pro-forma set of figures, which displayed how the soon-to-be amalgamated group would have performed during 2013 with revenues totalling $1.3bn. Of that figure, Amaya would have contributed $155m (12%).
The package to buy Oldford is thought to be the biggest in egaming history and will see PokerStars founder Isai Scheinberg and his son Mark sever ties with the company.
The deal, which is part funded by US private equity group Blackstone is expected to close by the end of September.