Nektan unlocks next level of revenue in second quarter

(ShareCast News) - Nektan, the business-to-business (B2B) gaming solutions and services provider, played its way towards a 71% rise in net gaming revenue (NGR) to £3.6m in the three months ended 31 December 2016.First time depositors rose by 151% to 35,215, cash wagering was 62% higher at £106.7m and the number of transactions processed doubled to 122.7m.During the period AIM-listed Nektan increased its ownership of Respin, a US focused mobile on-premise solution provider, to 85%, upgrading it to a subsidiary of the company from a joint venture.New casino games from BluePrint Gaming, Gamevy, DC Comics and Microgaming were also introduced.The internal content management system was upgraded, improving the gaming site load speed by 40% and offering deeper platform bonus features to enhance the player's experience.As announced at the end of December 2016, the company has received commitments to raise £2.3m gross from shareholders, including certain directors, through the proposed issuance of 8.2m new ordinary shares in order to provide near term working capital.The board are also making an offer to qualifying shareholders to subscribe for up to 1.8m new ordinary shares with a value of up to £500,000.Both the subscription and offer will be priced at 27.5p and will include a warrant that will reprice the investors' investment price to the issue price of any lower fundraising in the next six months.Chief executive Leigh Nissim said the proprietary core platform, Evolve, was key to helping the company grow as it offered solutions and services that "are fresh, high quality and tangibly different from other suppliers".He added: "In Europe, our trading momentum in Q2 has been excellent, largely as a result of product and service improvements and the addition of engaging casino games and of new high quality casino partners. Whilst in the US, owning more of our North American business, Respin, brings the business closer to the group and helps better leverage the products and assets of both businesses for mutual success."The share price fell 0.88% to 28.25p at 1303 GMT on Monday.