Bally’s and Gamesys shareholders vote to approve £2bn merger
Casino giant one step closer to acquiring Gamesys as it sets eyes on becoming leading player in US market
Bally’s Corporation and Gamesys shareholders have given the go-ahead for the £2bn merger of the two businesses.
At two respective meetings on 30 June, shareholders approved the purchase, which will see Bally’s acquire London-listed Gamesys as it looks to cement its US-focused B2C and B2B ambitions.
An overwhelming 185 Gamesys shareholders, or 99.1%, voted in favour of the merger, with 15 shareholders voting against the proposal. One shareholder withheld their vote.
Bally’s did not disclose its shareholder vote count.
The transaction is set to close in Q4 2021, subject to customary conditions including regulatory approval.
Upon completion of the transaction, the combined group would be headquartered in Rhode Island and retain its listing on the New York Stock Exchange.
Gamesys CEO Lee Fenton will become CEO of the combined group, while Bally’s CEO George Papanier is to stay on as a member of the board while managing the land-based casino business.
Bally’s legal and financial advisors for the transaction are Jones Day and Deutsche Bank. Gamesys’ legal and financial advisors are Clifford Chance and Macquarie Capital.
Soo Kim, Bally’s chair, said: “We are very pleased to have received our shareholders’ support, enabling us to achieve this next milestone toward the transaction close.
“By combining with Gamesys, we will meaningfully accelerate our growth strategy to become a premier, global, omni-channel gaming company, which we believe will create significant long-term shareholder value,” he added.
Fenton commented: “This combination represents a compelling opportunity to integrate Gamesys’ market-leading gaming technology with Bally’s growing US gaming platform to create a vertically integrated company that is poised to capitalise on the rapidly expanding US online sports betting and igaming market.”