The offer from live casino specialist Evolution represents a premium of 43% compared to NetEnt’s share price at the closure of Nasdaq Stockholm yesterday. It’s also a premium of 72%t compared to the average share price across the past month and 161% taking the last 90 days into consideration.
NetEnt’s board stated in its recommendation to shareholders that the combined company would create a leading B2B provider in online casino, providing for substantially increased scale and allowing for “significant capabilities” to leverage its strong position within the US states that have opened up for online casino.
The potential deal was described by Evolution as a “milestone” that will accelerate the company’s “evolution towards becoming a world leader in the online gaming industry”.
NetEnt’s board of directors has engaged Lazard as financial advisor and Vinge as legal advisor in relation to the offer. The acceptance period is expected to begin on August 17, 2020, expiring on October 26, 2020.
Jens von Bahr, chairman of the board of Evolution Gaming, said: “This strategic acquisition is an important part of Evolution's long-term vision of becoming a market leader in the global online gaming industry. The combination of Evolution's strong offering in live casino and NetEnt's leading position in online slots will result in a portfolio of world-class online games that will enable us to serve a growing customer base.”
“In addition, the combination of NetEnt's established position in North America and Evolution's existing studios in the US and our so-called first to regulated market strategy puts us in an advantageous position to capitalise on ongoing regulation in North America.”
Mathias Hedlund, chairman of the board at NetEnt, said: “More recently, NetEnt has improved its tech and product development capabilities and thereby its growth potential, while at the same time achieving a strong position in the states of the US that have opened up to online casinos.”
“Through this transaction, unique opportunities are created to form a leading B2B supplier in online casinos and take full advantage of the market developments with continued digitalisation and strong growth, especially in North America,” Hedlund added.
“With Evolution's position in live casino and NetEnt's position in online slots, the merged company will be well positioned to capture significant market share. This transaction will start a new chapter in the development of more entertaining online casinos for the benefit of players, operators, staff and shareholders," Hedlund concluded.
The business combination is expected to achieve combined cost savings of €30 million per year, in which Evolution stated that NetEnt’s assets will achieve a positive effect on its earnings per share value by 2021.
Source: GMB / iNTERGAME
