You may be surprised to see BetVictor on this list of platform providers, because up until now they have not really entered the B2B market, choosing to stay entirely independent and just focus on their own brand.
But in 2020 to the surprise of pretty much everyone, BetVictor announced a deal with Parimatch, an Eastern European brand of 20 years experience, in which the British gambling giant would serve as a white label provider.
They were well placed to do this, having their own sportsbook platform and odds traders etc, but it still came out of the blue leaving plenty of unanswered questions.
A few years later, and a rebrand to BVGroup signals a total change in direction for BetVictor, who are now a multi-brand business and needed a new corporate identity.
New BetVictor Betting Sites
The BetVictor Business
BetVictor are one of the dwindling number of online bookies who employ their own odds traders rather than buying them in from a provider. This makes them unique, exclusive, and completely in control of their own destiny when it comes to the sort of value they offer their customers.
For this reason, they have always been something of a favourite with high stakes punters wanting a more personal service.
They have also always run their own website rather than buying in a platform, which means they have full control of the build, the design, the speed, the site’s features and capabilities, etc. Therefore, BetVictor’s sportsbook is entirely individual, there is not another like it anywhere.
When it comes to their casino offering they have been more willing to accept help, however, namely from Everymatrix who provide integrated access to a huge portfolio of over 11,000 games from 175 different providers.
They have always kept all of this to themselves in the past, despite obviously having the ability to farm it out for extra income if they had wanted to. So the question is; what made them change their approach?
The Curious Case of Parimatch
Most white label providers have a string of white label brands operating under their license, using their platform and software, and all looking very similar to each other.
This makes those white label brands look a bit cheap, which of course they are, because there is very little individuality apart from their branding and they have much less control over what their site can and can’t do.
Becoming a white label is often the only real option for a new brand though, because it is just too expensive to do everything themselves such as develop a site, qualify for a license, and broker deals with software providers. A white label provider can offer them a ready made platform stocked with content and backed up with support teams and payment systems for a fraction of the price.
But Parimatch are no small new brand with limited funds. They are a huge name in Russia and many ex-Soviet Union countries, so why did they choose to become a white label of BetVictor?
Exclusivity
It can be very difficult, even for an established brand, to break into a new market – just look at how many successful UK footballers have come back from Spain with their tails between their legs – so buddying up with a brand already dominating in that new market has obvious appeal.
Reputation is important though, and so are first impressions, so you need to land with a bang and leave potential customers in no doubt over what you are all about.
BetVictor are an exclusive type of brand; very stylish, sophisticated, classy, and top tier; so for Parimatch, an established brand that wants to come across as a serious contender, they are an ideal partner.
BetVictor were able to provide expertise in the UK market, a license to allow Parimatch to get started quickly, and all of the relevant and compliant elements a new sportsbook needs without making them look small fry.
As for how this deal came about in the first place, well, that’s down to BetVictor’s decision to adapt their business model.
BetVictor Becomes BVGroup
Victor Chandler had always been the man at the head of BetVictor.
He was a bookmaker in the old sense of the word, as well as being a businessman, but when he sold the company to Michael Tabor in 2014, Tabor put someone else in charge; Andreas Meinrad.
Under Meinrad, BetVictor has transformed from an independent B2C business, to a multi-brand B2B and B2C business, but the focus certainly seems to be on growth in alternative markets and regions these days, with the company expanding into America, Canada and Brazil among other countries.
BetVictor’s technology platform is now the key element of the business, but it is not open to just anyone who wants to pay for it, BVGroup pick their partnering brands carefully, and media groups seem to be a common theme.
Now, there are 6 brands in the group:
- BetVictor
- Parimatch
- Bildbet (media)
- Heart Bingo (media)
- talkSPORTBET (media)
- Wiz Slots
BVGroup’s key ability is to provide brands that want to enter new markets the expertise and flexibility that other platform providers can’t match.
They can do this because of the power of their platform, helping brands that want a best-in-class product to target specific markets and demographics.
They call their platform product BV:360, with its resilience, extensibility and speed driving everything about it. It can be offered as a full managed service, tech/content only service, or a configurable bespoke service, so BVGroup really are capable of delivering whatever their partner brands need from them.