Playtech’s Plus500 deal is off
Playtech has terminated its merger agreement with trading platform Plus500.
The deal, which was due to be worth an approximate £459.6m and was first announced in June, has been called off due to Playtech not being able to meet terms set out by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to complete the purchase before a deadline of the end of this year.
The provider said: “Following an update from the FCA late in the afternoon of Friday 20 November 2015 and having considered its position over the weekend, the board of Playtech is now of the view that the steps being proposed to address these concerns will not sufficiently satisfy the FCA to enable Playtech to obtain the FCA’s approval by 31 December 2015, and is therefore withdrawing its change of control application to the FCA.
“The company has discussed with Plus500 the consequences of the recent developments with the FCA and has agreed to the termination of the merger agreement.”
Shares in Plus500 were suspended in May when the FCA conducted a review into its anti-money laundering checks.
Both Playtech and Plus500 had initially expected the deal to be completed by the end of September.
Playtech also believes that there is an increased risk that its planned acquisition of Forex broker Ava Trade will be terminated.
A termination right was triggered for Ava Trade when the Central Bank of Ireland opposed the completion of the deal in October.
The planned acquisition was first announced in July and is worth $105m.
Playtech feels that the failure to complete the Plus500 acquisition puts more doubt on the Ava Trade agreement.
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