Inspired Entertainment CEO: UK remote gaming tax hike was “draconian”
Supplier boss hopeful machine games duty increases will not be as stark as remote gaming duty jump to 40% in April
Inspired Entertainment CEO Brooks Pierce has slammed April’s hike in remote gaming duty from 21% to 40% as “draconian”, as the supplier reported a 24% decline in revenue for Q2 2026.
Revenue came to $60.8m, down from the $80.3m (£52.1m) recorded in Q2 2025. Bosses said the decline reflected the “divestiture of the UK holiday parks business and the restructuring of our pubs business”.
The remote gaming duty increase came into effect on 1 April, with the supplier stating it had shown “resilience” in the face of the hike, which included “continued market share gains and strong operating outperformance”.
The Social Market Foundation (SMF), a think tank that helped influence the Treasury’s decision on increasing online taxes, has called for a further doubling of duty, this time on Category B gaming machines, from 20% to 40%.
Asked for his thoughts on another hike on the earnings call, Pierce said: “Seeing how draconian the measures were in doubling the tax rate, I think everyone in the industry now feels like they need to be aligned against this.
“You read one side about increasing the taxes, but you see on the industry side what the potential job loss and high street decimation could be.
“It’s impossible to predict. But we’re certainly hopeful that if there is any increase in tax, it will be measured and not what that group [SMF] has suggested.”
The UK provided $34.6m, or 57% of Inspired Entertainment’s revenue for Q2, while Greece, the US and the Rest of the World contributed $6.4m, $5.8m and $14m, respectively.
UK revenue slipped from $57.6m in Q2 2026, although Pierce did note on the earnings call that the supplier had gained share in the reporting period.
He added: “In our conversations with some of our biggest operator partners, they’ve said to us that we’re continuing to climb the ladder of performance with them.”
Inspired’s interactive division represented $15.7m in revenue, virtual sports took $8.9m and retail solutions accounted for the largest share at $36.2m.
Elsewhere:
- Net operating income came to $9.9m
- Revenue and adjusted EBITDA in the firm’s Interactive division increased 15% and 13% year on year, respectively
- Full-year adjusted EBITDA guidance of $112m to $118m was reaffirmed
Commenting on overall performance, Pierce concluded: “Our second quarter results provide clear evidence that our transformation is translating into expanding margins and continued earnings growth, while building a stronger, more cash-generative business with lower leverage.
“We delivered sequential quarterly growth in both revenue (+6%) and adjusted EBITDA (+14%) and achieved a company record 45% adjusted EBITDA margin.
“With a growing pipeline of new customers and geographies, a strong product roadmap and a new content studio coming online in the fourth quarter, we expect momentum to build through the second half of the year and into 2027.”