Hamster Mania

How to play Hamster Mania

Many top gaming stocks have underperformed relative to the broader market in recent years, and most of the M&A activity has been facilitated by private equity and other institutions that can more readily capitalise on depressed valuations. There had been hope that rates would start to fall and help alleviate those pressures.

“Publicly traded valuations are a reflection of the current interest rate environment,” Chad Beynon, lead gaming analyst for Macquarie, told iGB. “Whether it’s a long-term financial model on a growth company, you’re going to discount that back at a higher rate, or if it’s just a standard four-wall business, the cash flows in a higher interest rate environment are worth less.”

According to data from Yahoo Finance, the resort and casino sector is -41% over the last five years, and the overall gambling sector, which includes major sportsbooks and online operators, is +7%; the benchmark S&P 500 index, by comparison, is +71% during that span.

What is Hamster Mania?

Not only has this made the industry a hotbed of innovation, but it’s also created an ideal environment for growth for those with cross-industry experience. Ideas from outside are now being welcomed, with companies finally embracing proven concepts from other sectors.

I may have started life in the industry as an outsider, but that is far from the case now. Those initial conferences were frightening, but they pushed me to meet people, and what I discovered was an industry built on community.

Now, when I attend conferences, I look forward to seeing people I genuinely consider friends, not just business contacts. One such friend is Gali Hartuv, CEO and co-founder of WarriorLab. We met at a conference and immediately hit it off. We now host regular monthly webinars about the iGaming industry,

What is Hamster Mania?

Papaya, headquartered in Israel, quickly secured a temporary stay of proceedings from the Tel Aviv District Court and filed a Chapter 15 petition with Delaware’s U.S. Bankruptcy Court. The Chapter 15 petition seeks to prevent Skillz from initiating collection efforts until its appeals play out.

Papaya concedes that it cannot immediately pay the $719 million judgment, arguing that allowing the company to pay the penalty over multiple years would “preserve … the rights of all parties.”

Papaya games consist of Solitaire Cash, Bingo Cash, and Bubble Cash.