In Australia and the boss for gaming machines developer Ainsworth Game Technology Limited has reportedly announced that he expects his firm to record a pre-tax loss of approximately $11 million for the six months to the end of the year.

According to a report from GGRAsia, Lawrence Levy serves as Chief Executive Officer for the Sydney-listed firm and he made the pessimistic prediction during a Thursday conference call as part of the enterprise’s annual general meeting. The source also detailed that the revelation came after the company chalked up a pre-tax loss of about $32 million for the twelve months to the end of June, which had represented a decline of some 500% year-on-year and prompted the cutting of some 107 in-house positions.

Relaxed recovery:

Appointed to his current post in July of last year, Levy reportedly told Ainsworth Game Technology Limited shareholders that he ‘cautiously expects the challenging market conditions’ largely caused by the coronavirus pandemic ‘to continue’ through the first half of next year as land-based casinos around the world cautiously begin resuming or ramping up operations.

Levy reportedly proclaimed…

“Our focus remains on protecting Ainsworth Game Technology Limited should a protracted downturn eventuate across global markets.”

Future focus:

Formerly an executive with European gaming machines giant Novomatic AG, Levy reportedly moreover declared that his firm’s loan facility with Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited had been ‘initially reduced’ to roughly $44.3 million in advance of undergoing a restructuring that involved ‘previous covenants being replaced with maintenance of minimum liquidity levels and quarterly sales targets.’ The boss furthermore purportedly affirmed that his company had ‘met these covenants’ through the three months to the end of September via a belief that its subsequent financials were ‘on track with our forecasted financial performance.’

Levy reportedly pronounced…

“We remain focused on ensuring that our liquidity and balance sheet strengthen during this challenging time.”