Holland Casino’s chief financial officer has admitted that the Dutch casino operator is now in a “vulnerable” financial position after a “difficult” half-year, with the potential rise of the Netherlands’ a pertinent potential development.
“It is crucial for our financial health that no further significant cost increases occur now,” Ruud Bergervoet said as the company announced a loss of €3.5m for the period, down from a profit of €17.2m in the prior-year period.
“Only then can we prevent ourselves from ending up in a loss-making situation.”
“Sharply rising costs” have had a “major impact,” the company said, adding that an initial tax rise of one per cent has cost €3.7m
Holland Casino said high inflation and the “gradual increase in the collective labour agreement” factored into an almost 11 per cent rise in personnel costs to €151.5m.
The operator is also still working on paying back costs incurred due to the pandemic, but CEO Petra de Ruiter was particularly vocal about the potential wider tax rise to 37.8 per cent.
“Our total tax burden will be almost 50 per cent,” De Ruiter said of the impact of the rise.
“This makes black figures impossible. We will then make a significant loss. Unlike supermarkets, we cannot pass on price increases properly.
“The only alternative is that we will take very undesirable measures such as aggressive campaigns to recruit new guests, encouraging people to spend much more or by significantly reducing the prize money.
“These measures are unacceptable for Holland Casino and irresponsible from the perspective of government policy on gambling. Moreover, the planned investments in our prevention policy will also come under pressure.”
The company had “anticipated” the “sharp decline in profitability,” it said, due to the “need to bring our gaming offering and staffing levels up to standard.”
Total revenues declined 2.4 per cent to €395.4m, down from €405.3m in H1 2023.
Nevertheless, chief commercial officer Malinda Miener said player protection training is having a strong impact on Holland Casino’s operations.
“I am pleased that our employees are becoming increasingly alert to signals of possible excessive participation in the game,” she said. “You can see that the intensive training policy and the intensification of communication about this have further strengthened awareness. I am really proud of that."
