BetMakers completes multi-million share placement ahead of Sportech purchase
Sports betting supplier raises A$50m in capital following Sportech shareholder approval of Tote disposal
Australian sports betting supplier BetMakers has made significant progress in its all-cash takeover of fixed-odds and Tote betting supplier Sportech.
In December, BetMakers agreed a A$56.2m (£30.9m) deal to assume control of Sportech’s Tote racing and digital businesses in the US, UK and Europe subject to subsequent shareholder votes and funding efforts.
Sportech shareholders overwhelmingly approved the takeover on Christmas Eve, with 99.81% greenlighting the deal.
Under the remit of the agreement and following shareholder approval, BetMakers made a non-refundable initial payment of £6.18m, representing 20% of the total value of the deal.
Following the shareholder vote, BetMakers announced it had completed the issue and allotment of more than 83 million shares at A$0.60 (£0.34) which raised A$50m (£28.3m) to facilitate the takeover.
In a statement on the successful capital raise, BetMakers said: “Funds received from the placement, in conjunction with existing cash, will be used to fund the company’s acquisitions of the racing and digital assets of leading international online sporting betting company Sportech.”
In addition to confirming the intended use of funds, BetMakers stated that the supplier was in talks with other operators to expand its global footprint.
A second statement read: “Separately, the company is currently in negotiations of commercial terms with several operators. While the company is currently unable to determine the materiality of such negotiations, the company will notify the market of such transactions in due course.”