American land-based casino operator Bally’s Corporation has announced the successful completion of a public stock offering that has brought in $671.4 million to help in its quest to acquire British iGaming firm Gamesys Group.
The Rhode Island-based company used an official press release to detail that it launched the week-long investment exercise last Tuesday to float 12.65 million common shares at an individual price of $55. The New York-listed enterprise explained that this offering had moreover included 30-day options for a selection of underwriters on 1.65 million additional stakes with its finishing tally not yet inclusive of any expenses.
Prominent proposal:
Previously known as Twin River Worldwide Holdings Incorporated until undergoing a name-change late last year, Bally’s Corporation is responsible for eleven land-based American casinos including the giant Bally’s Atlantic City and Eldorado Resort Casino Shreveport properties. The operator agreed a deal worth around $2.2 billion earlier this month that is to see it purchase the entire issued share capital of Gamesys Group, which runs a number of United Kingdom-licensed iGaming domains such as VeraJohn.com, InterCasino.co.uk and RainbowRichesCasino.com.
Acquisition assets:
Bally’s Corporation declared that the net proceeds from its latest public offering will now be used ‘to fund a portion’ of this exercise so as to give it an immediate large presence in the global online casino and bingo verticals. The Providence-headquartered firm furthermore disclosed that shareholders in Gamesys Group are to alternatively be given the option of swapping every one of their individual stakes for 0.343 of its own.
Read a statement from Bally’s Corporation…
“If the combination is not consummated, Bally’s Corporation expects to apply the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes, which may include repayment of debt, repurchases of its common stock, capital expenditures, acquisitions and investments.”
Rapid rise:
Bally Corporation’s has been on something of a buying spree of late courtesy of deals to acquire daily fantasy sports firm Monkey Knife Fight, online free-play games developer SportCaller and digital technology and services enterprise Bet.Works Corporation while failing in a $90 million bid for the World Poker Tour (WPT) poker brand. The company earlier proclaimed that the purchase of Gamesys Group is destined to give it ‘one of the broadest portfolios in the market of omni-channel cross-sell opportunities’ with a significant presence in the land-based gaming, online casino and sportsbetting, bingo, poker, daily fantasy sports and free-play verticals.
Senior shake-up:
Should the proposed takeover go through and Bally’s Corporation divulged that the Chief Executive Officer for Gamesys Group, Lee Fenton, will be appointed to lead the newly-enlarged company. It stated that its own boss, George Papanier, is to subsequently remain as a director with responsibility over retail casino operations but be joined on a new-look board featuring its target’s Chief Operating Officer, Robeson Reeves, and non-executive director Jim Ryan.
