Esports betting platform Esports Technologies Inc jumped 700% following its IPO on the Nasdaq on Thursday, demonstrating a growing market appetite for both betting and esports.
$EBET debuted Thursday at $6 per share, aiming to raise $14.4 million.
However by pre-market trading Friday, it was up to $46 a share. That’s equivalent to a $585 million market cap.
That is a significant premium to its current financials. Revenue for the fiscal year to September 30, 2020 was $196,000. Net income was -$573,000.
What is EBet?
EBet provides a platform for betting on esports titles like Counter-Strike: GO and League of Legends.
It operates a B2C site called Gogawi, focused on Asia and Latin America.
It also offers its technology as a B2B product.
Esports betting in the US?
CEO Aaron Speach said the company was “in the process” of getting into the US but not rushing because of the current regulatory environment.
Esports betting is still tiny in the US. Nevada allows wagers on approved events, while New Jersey could be close to widespread legalization.
EBet recently added Dennis Neilander, former chairman of the Nevada State Gaming Control Board, to its board to help its US ambitions.
Out with the old …
Speach said the long-term market was potentially enormous.
“There were 500 million esports viewers in 2020,” he said. “Meanwhile the NFL has an audience of 160 million and they generated $64 billion in legal wagers. So you can see how big the opportunity is.”
Esports bettors are also a much younger demographic than traditional bettors. As a result, EBet sees an opportunity to acquire customers without having to compete directly with heavyweights like FanDuel and DraftKings.
Instead, Speach pointed to companies like GG.Bet and Esports Entertainment Group ($GMBL) as more direct competitors.
“There’s tons of growth ahead, “ Speach predicted. “We’re really excited to bring esports to the forefront and we’re going to crush it in 2021.”
