Flutter in talks with Playtech over £2bn Snaitech purchase
Playtech shares surge 20% in London as FTSE 250 company confirms it is in discussions over the sale of its Italian business
Playtech has confirmed media speculation that the company is in talks with Flutter Entertainment over the sale of its Italian business Snaitech.
Although no details were provided on how advanced the talks are, the value of the transaction would be in the region of £2bn, Playtech said.
The deal, should it go through, would leave the FTSE 250 firm as a pure B2B organisation.
It would also strengthen Flutter’s position in the Italian market, with the company already owning Sisal since completing the £1.62bn purchase of the business in August 2022.
A statement from Playtech read: “Playtech confirms it is in discussions with Flutter and has granted Flutter a period of exclusivity to complete due diligence and finalise the necessary transaction documentation.
“There can be no certainty that any transaction regarding the potential sale of the Snaitech business will ultimately be agreed, or as to its terms. Further announcements will be made as and when appropriate.”
Media speculation, following confirmation that talks were in progress, sent Playtech shares soaring 21% to 644p at one point.
The firm’s stock is up 42% so far this year, giving it a market cap value of £1.94bn, at the time of writing.
A Flutter Entertainment spokesperson said: “Flutter notes the announcement by Playtech regarding a potential sale of its Snaitech business to Flutter and confirms that it is in discussions to acquire Snaitech.
“At this stage there is no certainty that Flutter will proceed with an acquisition. Flutter will provide an update as appropriate.”
The potential £2bn sale of Snaitech comes more than two years after Aristocrat’s £2.7bn bid to acquire Playtech fell through after a revolt from a handful of Asia-based investors, including Gopher Investments.
Following the collapse, talks were then held with TTB Partners over a potential acquisition, but likewise these discussions also failed to come to fruition.
Last year, reports emerged that Playtech had lodged a £700m bid for fellow London-listed firm 888 Holdings (now evoke).
Had the bid been successful, Playtech was reportedly keen to merge the 888 and Hills’ B2C brands with Snaitech, before hiving off Playtech’s existing B2B operations as a separate company.
Playtech’s other M&A plans were also scuppered last year as the company missed out on purchasing Italy-facing operator SKS365.
Lottomatica Group eventually snapped up SKS365 for €639m, with reports at the time suggesting Flutter had also been interested in acquiring the brand.
Flutter CEO Peter Jackson addressed M&A in the operator’s Q2 earnings call, noting that the firm was ready to sanction M&A in a market like Brazil ahead of next year’s regulation of the market.
The operator reported a group revenue increase of 20% year on year (YoY) to $3.6bn, with US revenue rising 39% YoY to more than $1.5bn.