Inspired Gaming Group has long been a developer of innovative games in systems in the gaming and lottery industries. Founder and CEO Luke Alvarez has been recognized as a visionary and cashed in a bit several years ago when he sold the company to private equity investors Vitruvian Partners for £74 million in 2010.
Last week, Vitruvian sold 65 percent of its stake in Inspired to special purpose acquisition company Hydra Industries Acquisition Corp. for £200 million. Hydra was assembled by former Scientific Games CEO Lorne Weil, who was with that company prior to its consolidation with slot makers, WMS and Bally Technologies. He was chairman and CEO from 1992 to 2008 and again from 2010 to 2013.
Hydra CFO George Peng is a former employee of Highpoint Associates, once a consultant to Scientific Games, and Marty Schloss, chief legal counsel for Hydra, served in that same position with Scientific Games.
Weil will serve as executive chairman of the re-named Inspired Entertainment and Alvarez will remain as CEO.
“We have been searching for a compelling business that utilizes our skill set to drive growth,” said Weil. “We are excited to have the opportunity to partner with Luke and his team as we work together to grow the digital business through increased focus and the deployment of new technology and content. We look forward to not only growing Inspired’s business, but also using it as a platform for potential opportunistic acquisitions of synergistic businesses across a number of geographies. We believe the combination of Inspired’s management team and our experience in utilizing technology and content to drive revenue growth in gaming markets makes us well-positioned to enhance value for our shareholders.”
Alvarez says the synergies work perfectly for Inspired.
“Lorne’s history in the gaming industry and Hydra’s access to the public capital markets are the perfect combination to take Inspired to the next level,” he said. “Our ambition with Inspired has always been to build a truly scaled and global leader in gaming technology, which we believe is transitioning rapidly to an all-digital environment. Our visions are aligned, and the Inspired team is looking forward to working with Hydra to drive value through organic and strategic growth.”
Vitruvian will maintain a 35 percent ownership and is confident the company will continue to thrive.
“We have enjoyed a strong and productive partnership with the management team at Inspired and are delighted to support this transaction, which will facilitate access to capital markets and support the company in the continued build-out of its market-leading positions,” said Vitruvian partner Philip Russmeyer.
Inspired is expected to earn nearly £85 million in the current fiscal year.
