Published on: October 3, 2025, at 10:58 AM.
Updated on: October 3, 2025, at 11:14 AM.
- Evolution’s stock dives as Philippine partner’s casino license is revoked
- JPMorgan downgrade deepens investor worries about growth projections
- B2B license remains secure, but compliance concerns unsettle the market
On Thursday, Evolution AB’s [EVO] shares dropped by 6% on the Nasdaq Stockholm following the revocation of its partner One Visaya Gaming Corp’s (OVGC) license by the Philippine gaming regulator. The decline continued into Friday, exacerbated by a downgrade from JPMorgan, which marked a challenging period for the live dealer platform leader.
The Swedish gaming company struck a partnership with One Visaya Gaming Corp in June to set up a new live dealer studio in Asia. This collaboration was hailed as a “significant milestone” in establishing their presence in the region. OVGC also manages an online casino, BigWin29, featuring Evolution’s games.
KYC Compliance Issues
PAGCOR announced on Thursday to Bloomberg that it has revoked OVGC’s B2C online casino license due to compliance failures. The company had failed to complete the requisite know-your-customer (KYC) checks to prevent fraud and money laundering activities.
OVGC is now required to cease operations of BigWin29 by October 8. Nevertheless, the B2B license remains unaffected, ensuring that the joint studio project continues as planned.
“B2C and B2B licenses operate independently, posing no issues for the studio,” stated Evolution spokesperson Adrian Westman in comments to Bloomberg.
Despite this, investors reacted negatively, wiping out approximately SEK 9.6 billion ($880 million) from the company’s market value. Evolution’s stock has fallen roughly 11.35% this year, starkly contrasting with the OMX Stockholm 30 index, which has gained around 9.08%.
Impact of JPMorgan’s Downgrade
JPMorgan downgraded Evolution’s stock to Underweight from Neutral on Friday, lowering the price target to SEK 675 from SEK 830. Analysts pointed to slowing growth in European markets, margin constraints, and increasing regulatory scrutiny in Asia as primary concerns.
While other analysts maintain a more positive outlook, with a consensus leaning towards Buy, the downgrade highlights rising investor apprehension regarding Evolution’s capability to sustain robust growth in emerging markets like the Philippines and India.
Evolution, a leading gaming company in Sweden, has faced ongoing scrutiny regarding its regulatory practices. In 2021, it was accused by short sellers of operating in black-market territories, claims that the company has firmly denied.
In August, Evolution’s stock faced another setback following a court filing that disclosed hidden recordings of company executives, acknowledging that its products had mistakenly entered banned markets, including Iran, Sudan, and China.