Bwin.Party Pleased With Pre-Close Trading Results

When online gaming giants PartyGaming Plc and Bwin Interactive Entertainment merged in March this year, the resulting Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment became the world's biggest listed online gambling operator, and one which has had a very good year by all accounts.

According to a recent Bwin.Party pre-close trading update, since the end of September the large Gibraltar-based firm has performed 'solidly,' and according to the expectations of management, with full-year earnings of between 22 to 24 percent before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation.

The pre-close trading update also mentioned that Bwin.Party's integration is very much 'on-track', and in 2012 is expected to yield approximately €40 million in yearly synergies, and around €65 million in 2013. In this vain, the company has re-bought 14 million shares at an average cost of £1.26 each.

Bwin.Party Set For Spanish and Danish Licenses

However, arguably the biggest news concerning Bwin.Party is that it is poised to be approved to receive new Spanish and Danish online gaming licenses, which means it will be able to strengthen its foothold in Europe by operating in two soon-to-be regulated and highly lucrative online gaming markets.

With respect to the Spanish market, Bwin.Party's license applications were submitted at the end of November, which when approved, will allow the firm to offer a host of Spanish online casino, sports, poker and bingo services next year, when the country's online gambling market is officially opened.

With respect to Denmark, Bwin.Party's license applications were submitted in October, and once approved will make the firm one of the first wave of online gambling firms to offer online sports, casino and poker facilities in the also newly regulated Scandinavian country.

Bwin.Party Has Its Eye on Germany and the US

But Bwin.Party's plans for world domination do not end with Spain and Denmark, as it is also keeping a close eye on online gambling developments in Germany. Currently only Schleswig-Holstein, Germany's most northern state, plans to legalise and regulate online gaming, while Germany's other 15 states do not.

Bwin.Party is also watching the United States, which is still struggling to regulate online gambling at a state and federal level. However, thanks to agreements with US land gambling titans MGM and Boyd, the company is ideally placed to enter the lucrative US online gambling market if and when it is legalised.