Despite having to operate under what it labelled as “challenging conditions”, Supreme Ventures Group, during its third-quarter period, reported profits of $312 million — almost 50 per cent less than it earned in the same period last year.

“The period’s net profit of $312.3 million represented a decline of $310.5 million or 49.9 per cent when compared to 2020. For this quarter, the operations were largely impacted by several external factors, including severe Government-imposed restrictions and increased lockdown days to contain the devastating spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19. The company is grateful to have performed creditably under these challenging conditions,” a recent interim report to shareholders stated.

The company in crediting its aggressive product and channel diversification strategy, and said that, despite exposure to some associated risks of the novel coronavireus pandemic, its business was able to navigate the challenging environment by “utilising tactics which led it to maintain firm cost control measures”. Consequently, direct expenses during the third quarter was reduced to $7.9 billion—$203 million less than the previous year’s quarter.

The gaming and lotteries company said that having also lost out on about 15 days of full operation as a result of the no-movement restrictions and multi-day lockdowns, the business made increase payouts to customers ($14.7 billion), along with contributions of $1.9 billion to government coffers. Gross profits for the period which amounted to $2.2 billion also saw slight reductions when compared with the same quarter in 2020. Total assets fell by $395 million to total $15.2 billion at the end of the period.

Total gaming income amounted to $10.1 billion, the bulk of which flowed from its lotteries segment, amassing revenues of $14.4 billion, coupled with equal contributions of $8.5 billion from the sports betting and pin codes [phone credit] segments.

The group, which runs a highly diversified operation, comprises major subsidiaries Prime Sport, Supreme Ventures Racing and Entertainment Limited, Supreme Ventures Business Hub and, more recently, micro-lending firm McKayla Financial. The group, earlier this year, also acquired a 10 per cent stake in large productions company Main Event Limited.

“The group has withstood the external shocks that have crippled less-prepared organisations and, as we look to the future for which the groundwork is now being laid, we see a return to normalcy over the short term. As lockdowns become less of a norm and our vaccination efforts bear fruit, we expect to see the country return to the growth trajectory that was being embarked on pre-COVID,” Executive Chairman Gary Peart said of the company’s outlook.