According to reports which originated from Sky News today, Playtech is in talks with Flutter Entertainment over the sale of its Italian brand Snaitech.
The deal isn’t expected to reach a formal agreement until at least next month and reports have said it could be one that is worth around £2bn ($2.57bn).
This news comes after Flutter reported strong numbers in its Q2 report, including 20% growth in its revenue to $3.61bn, and saw its share price rise, and did mention in its conference call that it is open to future acquisitions.
Playtech then released a Response to Media Speculation confirming the talks: “Playtech notes the recent media speculation that it is in discussions with Flutter Entertainment plc ('Flutter') regarding the potential sale of the Snaitech business for a value that could be about £2bn (the 'Transaction').
“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.”
Flutter also responded to the Playtech announcement, saying: “Flutter Entertainment plc ("Flutter") (NYSE: FLUT; LSE: FLTR) notes the announcement by Playtech plc ("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.”
In a recent edition of Gambling Insider’s GI Friday, we speculated that Playtech had turned into a “sleeping giant,” but is now a company on the up, with its big-name partnerships one to keep an eye on for investors.
Given the estimated size of this transaction, this sentiment would be supported as it would underline the value seen in Playtech’s brands; given it was only in 2022 when Playtech advised shareholders to vote in favour of an Aristocrat takeover.
Were a sale to go through, it would make Playtech a purely B2B supplier again.
