the conditions set the cost Wagering conditions decide how much of the credit becomes cash. The harder the condition, the larger the share of credit that is forfeited and the lower the realised cost - which is the trade a reader should see behind a headline percentage.
Hold Desk / The bonus line
Figure 06
A bonus is granted in full and costs only the part that is ever withdrawn
An offer advertises a value, grants a credit, and costs the operator something else again. The gap between the three is the single most misunderstood line in gambling economics: bonus funds are not cash, most of them are never withdrawn, and the cost of the offer is the realised share plus the expected payout of the free play attached to it.
Figure stub
- Sheet
- HD-58-07
- Subject
- The cost of an offer
- Advertised (sample)
- £100 + 50 spins
- Realised per claimant
- £25.80
gross winWhat was kept: everything staked minus everything returned to players
the holdThe gross win divided by turnover, measured over a period and a whole book of play
net revenueWhat survives the bonus line, and the definition a reader should check first
Direct answerA bonus is granted as credit and costs the operator only the part that is wagered through and withdrawn, plus the expected payout of any free spins. The rest is breakage: credit that is never converted. So the advertised value of an offer is not its cost, and the realised cost is the figure that belongs on the acquisition line.
Granted is not paidMost credit is never withdrawnFree spins cost their payoutBreakage is the gap
Four figures with one name
An offer produces at least four numbers, and a reader who is given only one of them cannot check it against the others.
advertised The headline value
What the marketing states, usually as a maximum: a match percentage up to a cap, plus a number of free spins with a stated spin value. It is a ceiling that most claimants do not reach.
granted The credit issued
What was actually credited across all claimants. It is a liability only in the sense that it can be played; it is not money the operator has paid out, and it sits as a balance until it is used.
converted Withdrawn as cash
The part that met the wagering conditions and left as a withdrawal. This is the part that became a real cost, and it is usually a minority of the granted figure.
breakage Never withdrawn
Credit that expired, was forfeited, or was lost before the conditions were met. It costs nothing and is the reason an offer can be advertised at a value far above its cost.
Worked example - costing the sample operator's welcome offer (illustrative)
Offer: 100% match up to 100.00, plus 50 free spins at 0.10 each
New customers in the month: 20,000
Claimants (60% of them): 12,000
Average match granted: 60.00 -> granted credit = 12,000 x 60.00 = 720,000.00
Share of granted credit later wagered through and withdrawn: 35%
realised bonus cost: 720,000.00 x 0.35 = 252,000.00
breakage: 720,000.00 - 252,000.00 = 468,000.00 (65% of what was granted)
Free spins: 12,000 claimants x 50 spins = 600,000 spins
expected payout of those spins at 96% return: 600,000 x 0.10 x 0.96 = 57,600.00
Total realised cost of the offer: 252,000.00 + 57,600.00 = 309,600.00
per customer acquired (20,000): 309,600.00 / 20,000 = 15.48
per claimant (12,000): 309,600.00 / 12,000 = 25.80
The advert says up to 105.00 of value. The realised cost is 25.80 a claimant, which includes the
55% of claimants whose average grant was below the advertised cap.
Why this line matters to the rest of the desk
- It sits inside acquisition spend. The realised cost is part of what it costs to bring a customer in, and it belongs on the same line as advertising. The acquisition figure is meaningless if the offer is left out.
- It is deducted to give net revenue. The gross win is what is kept before the bonus cost is taken out; net revenue is what survives it. Two reporters using the two definitions can disagree about "revenue" for the same month.
- It funds part of the turnover. Bonus funds are staked, so they add turnover without adding deposits - which changes the denominator of the hold and the amount of play behind a revenue figure.
- It buys retention, not only acquisition. Offers are also aimed at customers who already exist, and the same accounting applies: a share of what is granted is ever withdrawn.
one
two
free spins are cash-like Spins are valued at their expected payout. Winnings from a free spin are usually withdrawable cash, so the cost is not the notional spin value but what the spins are expected to pay.
three
a low realised cost is not generosity Breakage is the point of the design. An offer whose realised cost is a quarter of its advertised value is working as intended, and the arithmetic is on the page rather than hidden.
Where the numbers in this page come from. The 60% claim rate, the £60 average grant, the 35% conversion and the 96% return on spins are all labelled illustrative and chosen so the arithmetic can be followed and changed. Real offers differ in conditions, in spin value, in eligibility and in the share of credit that is ever withdrawn, and those differences are exactly what moves the cost.