Ainsworth writes off US$8mln in Argentina, delays 1H results

Aug 28, 2023 Newsdesk Latest News, Top of the deck, World  

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Ainsworth Game Technology Ltd says it expects AUD13-million (US$8.4-million) investments in Argentina “to be fully written down” in its first-half results to June 30, and that as a consequence of dealing with that matter, it expects to release its unaudited numbers on August 31, two days later than it mentioned in a filing last week.

The slot machine maker still expects to report a first-half pre-tax profit of AUD23 million, “excluding currency impacts and one-off items”.

The firm gave the update in a Monday announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

Regarding the group’s exposure to Argentina, it stated: “The board highlighted that despite preliminary legal advice indicating a high likelihood of recoverability, administrative delays in court proceedings,” and other matters, “this write-down was considered necessary at the present time.”

“The write-down will be re-evaluated as more information becomes available to reliably assess the extent of recoverability,” added Ainsworth Game.

The filing also noted – referring to events subsequent to the first-half reporting period – that “macro-economic uncertainties and political instability within Argentina have continued since 30 June 2023 with the Argentinian peso experiencing significant depreciation”.

Ainsworth Game’s majority shareholder is Austria-based gaming equipment maker and operator Novomatic AG.

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