Record quarterly betting volume fueled a 63% year-over-year rise in revenue in the first quarter of 2024 for NorthStar Gaming.

For the three months ended March 31, 2024, NorthStar Bets, the company’s made-in-Ontario casino and sportsbook platform, took a record $218 million in wagers. It also brought in gross gaming revenue of $7 million. Those are year-over-year increases of 56% and 59%, respectively.

Total net revenue for the Toronto-based company reached $5.9 million, nearly two-thirds higher than the $3.6 million reported in Q1 2023. Gross margin nearly doubled to $2.2 million from $1.2 million.

CEO Michael Moskowitz said the Q1 2024 figures including the record wagering volume continued the company’s “pattern of strong year-over-year growth.”

“Our premium customer experience and growing brand awareness are propelling higher player retention, strengthened loyalty and increased player values,” added Moskowitz. “These positive trends enable us to spend our marketing dollars more efficiently, contributing to improved operating leverage as the business scales.”

These results follow quickly on the heels of NorthStar’s Q4 2023 reporting, in which it posted a quarterly record $6.5 million in revenue that was more than double that of Q4 2022. In terms of full-year results for 2023, NorthStar Bets’ handle and GGR both more than trebled compared to 2022, although the brand’s 2022 was less than eight months long after it launched in May of that year.

All told, Northstarbets.ca, the company’s sports betting site that is managed by subsidiary Slapshot Media Inc. and owned and operated by the Abenaki Council of Wolinak, has generated more than $1 billion in total wagers in its first two years of operations.

NorthStar fueled by funding and player acquisition

In its earnings release, NorthStar Gaming noted that its Q1 2024 uptick has been driven by the fact it is acquiring more users for less cost. The company’s number of active players rose 42% year-over-year while the cost per acquisition of a customer dropped by 9%.

It has also seen the benefit of its continued strategic marketing agreement with Playtech. The gaming software provider provides managed services for NorthStar’s iGaming operations that are valued at up to $4 million through to October 31, 2024, designed to accelerate player acquisition in Ontario. It also recently pledged an additional and separate $3 million in short-term financing.

The company’s sportsbook is powered by Kambi and it has other partners in the Ontario market including Sportradar and IGT for betting content.

The company has also recently bolstered its ‘Sports Insights’ content vertical and launched a new VIP Elite membership program. Looking ahead, it intends to introduce more branded table games as well as online bingo offerings.

“March was the strongest month of Q1, and we have maintained that momentum into the second quarter,” said Moskowitz. “Our team is making regular improvements to our service offering, such as the recent launch of a VIP Elite strategy aimed at the most active players who drive a meaningful share of our results.

“We have some exciting demand creation activities planned for the coming months along with further innovations to our platform and content. We remain focused on unlocking value for our stakeholders and are excited about the opportunities ahead of us in 2024.”

Dhushenthen named new CFO

To help realise those opportunities, NorthStar also announced a new C-suite move.

Interim chief financial officer and former VP of finance and compliance, Chin Dhushenthen, has been appointed as the company’s permanent CFO.

Moskowitz said that Dhushenthen, who has been at NorthStar since 2021, “has demonstrated strong leadership of the finance team and excellent knowledge of our compliance and financial reporting systems.”