Trevor Croker, chairman of Australian slot supplier Aristocrat Leisure Ltd., said the company’s market position and outlook remain strong despite its failure in a takeover bid for London-based iGaming supplier Playtech, PLC, which he blamed on a group of Asian investors holding around 15 percent of the company that formed a blocking group that led to the company falling far below the 75 percent approval threshold for the deal to go through.
“In particular, the emergence of a certain group of shareholders who built a blocking stake while refusing to engage with either ourselves or Playtech materially impacted the prospects for the success of our offer, which had been recommended by the board of Playtech,” Croker said of the takeover bid in a statement issued last week.
“The long-term interests of our shareholders are the absolute focus of M&A at Aristocrat. We will always take a highly disciplined, strategic approach to our investment choices, consistent with our customer-centric philosophy. Aristocrat has entered into 2022 with excellent operational momentum, flexibility and resilience with continued strong product-led performance across gaming and Pixel United (formerly Aristocrat Digital).”
The Playtech merger was intended to give Aristocrat immediate market presence in the burgeoning online gaming market in the U.S. and elsewhere.
“We look forward to providing further detail to shareholders at our upcoming AGM later this month,” Croker continued. “From a strategic perspective, Aristocrat’s commitment to participate in the online (real-money gaming) segment will not change.
“In the future, online RMG capability will be one way we deliver new and connected experiences that leverage our world-leading content, and unlock additional value across Aristocrat’s portfolio while deepening customer engagement.
“Our focus now shifts to accelerating our plans for alternative online RMG scaling options, and continuing to execute our growth strategy, in a way that is consistent with our rigorous investment criteria, high regulatory standards and integrity. We look forward to sharing more details with shareholders as we move forward.”
