Bally’s and Gamesys Agree Terms on £2B Merger

Bally’s Corporation and Gamesys have agreed to the terms on a merger that would see Bally’s acquire Gamesys for £2bn ($2.74bn).

As per the terms of the deal, Bally’s would pay £18.50 in cash for each Gamesys share, an almost 13% premium to where the UK company’s stock closed on Tuesday.

Rhode Island-based Bally’s said that acquiring Gamesys, which owns Virgin Casino and Jackpotjoy, would secure it expertise in online gambling products. At the same time, Gamesys would “benefit from Bally’s fast-growing land-based and online platform in the United States.”

Neil Goulden, chair of Gamesys, said the deal was “about putting together someone with a lot of online capability and capacity with a US retail operator to really tap into what will become the biggest gambling market in the world.”

If the takeover does happen, Gamesys chief executive Lee Fenton will lead the combined company, which will retain the UK group’s domestic business as well as its operations in Japan and Spain.

In its statement, the US casino operator said that “the Gamesys board has indicated to Bally’s that it is minded to recommend the cash offer to Gamesys shareholders.”