Loto-Québec has released its financial report for the first quarter of the 2023-2024 FY from April 1, 2023, through June 26, 2023. In that time, the Crown corporation recorded total revenues of CA$711.2 million and a consolidated net income of CA$380.9 million. These numbers exceeded the corporation’s projections and are in accordance with its growth trajectory.
For comparison, the numbers for total revenues and net income reported for the first quarter of the current fiscal year are an 8.4% and 12.9% improvement over the same quarter of the pre-unprecedented situation fiscal year. However, those same figures were a 4.5% and 14.7%, decrease, respectively, in the same quarter to the same period in the last fiscal year.
Broken Down by Sectors
In Q1 of the current FY, the casino and gaming hall sector contributed to CA$274.6M from the revenue which was CA$11.2M or 4.2% more from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, lottery revenues generated CA$224.7M, which was a 12.4% or CA$31.9M decrease. This was due to the lower sales of Lotto Max. Online lottery amounted to 12.8% of the sector’s proceeds.
Earnings from the Crown’s establishments segment clocked CA$216.8M from the total revenue. However, this was a drop of CA$11.6M or a 5.1% drop from the same Q2 of last year. Bars were impacted by the unprecedented situation, leading to many closures. The trend seems to be reversing and retailer demand for terminals remains high, but the Crown is assessing how to manage VLTs in a responsible manner.
Furthermore, in Q1 the province saw the emergency of 20 new lottery millionaires who shared 26 windfalls of CA$1M or more. The total awarded amount from lottery, Kinzo, and network bingo was CA$373.6M. Also, tickets for the new PLINKO® lottery game were launched at retailers and online in May. It offers a number of instant prizes and an option to win even more at Casino Montréal.
In the quarter, the Crown corporation also debuted the “So that a game remains a game” campaign, which ran from May 8 through June 25, 2023. Its objective was to remind Quebecers that they can utilize the Crown’s responsible gambling tools, measures, and programs when playing its games or when visiting its land-based locations. The campaign was renewed in September 2023.
Abandoning Mini-Casino Plans
Over the last couple of months, Loto-Québec became a subject of criticism for its plans to launch over 300 VLTs at the former Taverne 1909 next to the Bell Centre in downtown Montreal. Recently, Montreal Public Health or DRSP opposed the launch of the mini-casino by releasing a 40-page report on how the gaming hall could lead to potential harms to the local population.
This left the Crown corporation no choice but to back out of the plan. This week, it issued a press confirming that it will pull the plug on the project. The gambling regulator said that it respects the opinion of the public health organization, but still deems the project a missed opportunity. The objective was to capture some of the fans who visit the home of the Montreal Canadiens.
Source: “Very good results for Loto-Québec” Loto-Québec, September 20, 2023
