BtoBet Chief Operational Officer Dima Reiderman takes a retrospective view of the company’s performance during 2021 – a year of expansion and consolidation – and offers up his outlook for what awaits the company throughout 2022.
With 2021 regarded as a very important year for BtoBet and its growth strategy, the sportsbook platform provider continued to establish a strong foothold in Europe, whilst simultaneously consolidating its core markets.
Having achieved those primary goals, COO Dima Reiderman believes the time has come to focus on what lies ahead for the company during 2022.
“Looking back at January last year, we’ve spoken openly about our intent to be present in the more mature markets,” he explained. “Now we are in a position to say that we are present in these high-yield markets, and we want to further increase our presence in these markets.”
Highlighting progress, he added: “We have gone live in Poland and the UK, and are keen to continue building our presence in what is Europe’s biggest market. At the same time, I am also very positive that 2022 will see BtoBet very active on the European front and entering multiple jurisdictions in this mature market.
“All this whilst at the same time further maintaining our growth strategy in emerging markets, where for instance in the past weeks we have announced our partnership with FanDuel in Brazil.
Reiderman was also keen to emphasize the importance of individual markets and how geographic expansion plays a significant role in driving BtoBet’s product roadmap. “Entering and expanding in these markets also drives to a significant extent the evolution of our sports betting product, because it needs to develop to fit the requirements of the mature market punters,” he said.
“One has to keep in mind that the betting preferences of our core markets – Africa and Latin America in particular – are very much different than what shapes up the player preferences in the more mature markets, such as in the United Kingdom for instance. And it is with this in mind that we are developing our sportsbook offering to fit the taste of these more mature markets.”
The COO cited the progression of the company’s horse racing product as perfectly encapsulating this type of product evolution. “Horse racing is a must-have for instance in the UK, whilst bookmakers and operators in Latin America and Africa do tend to do without it,” he advised. “Another example is esports, which is a high bandwidth consumption product, and whilst again it is a must for some markets, it’s not a prerequisite for others.
“And in parallel to this product evolution, there are also the modifications that will be taking place on the front-end level, whereby we will be adjusting the UI of the product to fit the liking of punters in different market scenarios. So essentially, we are working hard on simultaneously addressing this co-existence: our expansion and entry in new markets, and the evolution of our product roadmap.”
Growth into new markets last year has also seen BtoBet expand significantly from a human resources point of view, as Reiderman explained: “The company’s workforce has grown by over 40% during the past 12 months, and the vast majority of this new talent has joined our technology division, particularly the product team.
“We brought onboard experienced people with a thorough understanding of the igaming industry, with knowledge in retail, online, and a profound expertise in mature markets. This latter aspect is of particular importance given the fact that mature markets constitute a primary focal point in our growth strategy.”
The growth in the headcount, he said, is a direct result of BtoBet’s investment in technology, adding: “We are maintaining this same direction for 2022 as well, again mainly on the technology side. All this whilst at the same time continuing to strengthen the company’s management and leadership team.”
The big question, however, is how does all this growth translate to the bottom line and the company’s overall financial performance? According to Reiderman, 2021 will go into the company’s financial annals as the best year ever for BtoBet with Q4 being the highlight for the entire year.
He stated: “However, whilst very satisfied with what we have achieved during the past 12 months, we set even more ambitious targets for us for the coming 12 months and which will see BtoBet registering further significant growth in terms of revenue. Being part of a publicly-traded group also allows BtoBet to explore benefits from the group synergies, sharing knowledge and experience, and at the same time optimizing costs.”
Summarising the transition into the New Year, Reiderman said: “2021 demonstrated the company’s agility, because whilst we were laying the foundation for the long-term growth of the company, in parallel to this we registered the best year from a financial point of view.
“And the past 12 months have actually shown that one does not necessarily need to come on account of the other. All this hard work will eventually pay off in the coming years because BtoBet will be one of the market leaders in the sports betting industry.”
