United States
United Kingdom
Summary:
- The Nevada Gaming Commission has given Aristocrat the green light to acquire NeoGames.
The acquisition was inked for an agreed amount of AUS$1.5 billion (US$962 million).
Aristocrat will enter the iLottery market and prepare it to enter additional iGaming verticals.
The Nevada Gaming Commission Thursday announced it approved Aristocrat’s acquisition of NeoGames for AUS$1.5 billion (US$962 million).
Aristocrat, Expected to Position as a Leader in Online Gaming
The acquisition of the 2014-founded Aspire Global spinoff, which is soon to be completed, will allow Aristocrat to penetrate the iLottery field while also paving its way for additional verticals in online gaming.
The acquisition of the business-to-business gaming company that is currently operating in Europe is expected to position Aristocrat with “global scale and capability” in the online gaming industry, as explained by Tracey Elkerton, Aristocrat’s chief compliance officer and director of many of the group’s subsidiaries.
Elkerton, who was licensed by the Nevada Commission as part of the approval procedure, added the acquisition would generate “significant revenue opportunity” by connecting Aristocrat’s content and important regulatory ties with NeoGames’ advanced technology and platform.
Aristocrat will also acquire an experienced management team with proven results to assist it with its business scaling plans.
“Transformational” Transaction Ahead
Speaking to the Commission, Elkerton said they expected the transaction to “be transformational” to their business while laying the foundation to fulfill their “ambitions to be a leader in the online gaming”.
He added that the company completed extensive background checks on all of NeoGames’s executives.
Since it did not find anything considered unsuitable, it approved NeoGames in May 2023, further leading to the acquisition deal which will feature its four complementary business segments including Aspire Core, Pariplay, and BtoBet.
The acquisition deal will be funded with existing cash and internal dividends.
This will give Aristocrat loans and issue shares to complete the final payments at close.
The next step is for NeoGames to change its domicile to the Cayman Islands, which is scheduled to happen on April 24.
Next, NeoGames, which is currently traded on NASDAQ, will stop trading and prepare for a shareholder meeting while a Cayman company and shareholders will be required to once again cast their and give the green light for the merger.
