Intralot acquires minority stake in Bit8

Intralot has announced it will acquire a minority stake in platform provider Bit8 as part of a strategic alliance that will see the lottery giant integrate the supplier’s solutions across its international portfolio.

The deal, which was announced this afternoon at ICE Totally Gaming in London, will see Intralot take a minority stake of more than 25% in the Malta-based Bit8 with a conditional option for this to be increased in at a later stage.

As part of a strategic alliance, Intralot will integrate Bit8’s multi-vertical platform which includes e-wallet, player account management, real-time analytical tools and a range of CRM functions, into its portfolio of sites.

The agreement also includes an exclusive joint-development and marketing partnership across more than 50 international markets in which Intralot is currently present.

Although no financial details have been released, the deal is understood to be worth in the region of €30m, although this could rise dependent on future performance.

Intralot CEO Antonis Kerastaris said the agreement was part of the operator’s sharpened focus on player management, an area he described as a “key element” of future success.

“As we seamlessly integrate their platform with our own and that of our customers we will be uniquely positioned to manage player data and provide an exceptional gaming experience to customers, in line with our strategy to focus on the B2C segment of the global gaming market,” Kerastaris said.

Bit8 CEO Angelo Dali believed the firm would benefit from Intralot’s wide global reach while the operator would leverage Bit8’s “customer service expertise”.

“This alliance is in line with achieving our vision of having the industry’s best online gaming platform, across multiple product and channel verticals,” Dali said.

The deal is Intralot’s first major announcement since Kerastaris succeeded Constantinos Antonopoulos as group CEO late last year.