Launch of iGaming in Rhode Island Boosts State Gaming Revenue in April

Article by : Erik Gibbs Jun 4, 2024

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In April 2024, the Rhode Island Lottery reported $2.1 million in iGaming revenue for the first full month of operations on Bally’s online platform. This marks Rhode Island’s entry into the online casino gaming market, making it the seventh state in the US to offer such services.

The state launched its online casino gaming on March 5, further extending Bally’s existing monopoly on state gaming, which includes two brick-and-mortar casinos and sports betting, both mobile and retail.

The introduction of Internet casino gaming in Rhode Island is anticipated to play a crucial role in the state’s tax revenue. This is particularly vital as the sports betting levies have seen a downturn.

For the first four months of 2024, the state collected $7 million in sports betting taxes, which is $1 million less than the same period in 2023. The taxes generated from internet casino gaming have already shown a positive impact, with $929,000 collected in April alone.

Over the two months since the platform’s launch, iGaming has brought in nearly $1.6 million in taxes.

A closer look at the financial details reveals substantial growth in wagering activities. In April, the total drop for casino slots and table games amounted to $48 million, a remarkable 54.4% increase from the $31.1 million generated in March, the month of the platform’s launch.

Focusing on the slots, the slot drop, which represents the total amount wagered, reached $25.5 million in April. Despite a 65% increase in the slot drop compared to the previous month, revenue from slots rose by only 38.4%, totaling $1.3 million.

This discrepancy is attributed to a decline in the win rate, which dropped by over one percentage point to 5.3%. Rhode Island taxes slot revenue at a high rate of 61%, resulting in a significant tax inflow of $817,900 from slot revenue alone.

Table games, including blackjack, craps, roulette, and baccarat, saw a drop of $22.5 million in April. The winnings from these games nearly tripled from March, reaching $740,600, with the win rate improving to 3.3% from 1.5% in the previous month.

The wagering for table games increased by 43.9%, reflecting growing interest and participation. The state taxes table game winnings at 15%, which translated to $111,100 in tax revenue from Bally’s table game winnings in April.

Rhode Island’s venture into internet casino gaming aligns with broader national trends. In April 2024, operator gross revenue winnings across the US totaled $619.1 million, surpassing $20 billion in all-time revenue.

The states of Michigan, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, collectively known as the “Big 3,” were major contributors, accounting for $554.2 million of the total revenue. Nationally, known internet casino wagering exceeded $8 billion for the second consecutive month, reaching $8.07 billion in April.

This figure represents a 24.8% increase from April 2023, showcasing the rapid growth of the online gaming industry. States levied taxes on $593.4 million in adjusted gross revenue, resulting in $125.4 million in tax receipts for April, an increase of $26.6 million compared to the previous year.

Since Delaware and New Jersey launched the first online casino platforms in late 2013, total state taxes from internet casino gaming are just $575,000 shy of $4 billion.