Kindred Group Plc, formerly Unibet, will purchase U.K.-based 32Red Plc for 9 million.
According to Bloomberg News, Kindred will pay 196 pence a share, about 16 percent above the stock’s recent price. The debt-funded offer is 40 percent more than the average price in the last three months, Kindred said in a statement.
The takeover is the latest in a series of consolidation of gaming companies. 32Red has been considered likely to be acquired for several months and its stocks have recently risen among acquisition rumors.
Bloomberg said stockholders for 32Red have already approved the sale with about 71 percent of 32Red’s stock having given irrevocable undertakings to accept the offer. With the exception of one investor owning 2.8 percent of the stock, all those undertakings will remain in place even in the event of a counter bid. The offer is conditional upon Kindred gaining acceptances of 75 percent, the news service reported.
“We’re optimistic we will be over 75 percent in a short space of time,” Kindred Group Chief Executive Officer Henrik Tjaernstroem told the news service.
Kindred Group may also have plans to buy Danish state-owned gambling operator Danske Spil for around DKK4 billion (US$570 million), according to Danish news outlet Børsen. Reports indicate the Danish government may stand in the way of the deal.
CalvinAyre.com reported that Denmark, which regulated its iGaming market in 2012, has become an attractive jurisdiction for international online operators. But MPs in the country are uncertain about the move.
Denmark’s gaming regulator says DKK3.7 billion (US$523 million) was generated from online gaming in 2016, up DKK3.4 billion year-on-year. Sports betting saw GGR of DKK2.2 billion, compared to DKK2 billion in 2015. Online casino games excluding poker generated DKK1.4 billion, up DKK1.3 billion. Online poker produced DKK148 million in 2016, down slightly from DKK165 million in 2015.
