Stride closes in on Spanish acquisition after £10m IPO
Stride Gaming eyes European expansion and larger scale acquisitions following this week's flotation announcement
Multi-brand bingo-led operator Stride Gaming will use the money raised by floating on London’s Alternative Investment Market to drive a period of expansion both in the UK and abroad with the firm currently closing in on a Spanish acquisition.
The firm has been in advanced discussions with an unnamed Spanish operator since September, and hopes to make an announcement in the coming weeks although the firm’s chief executive would not be drawn on commenting further on the deal.
But, talking to eGaming Review following Tuesday’s IPO announcement, Stride’s CEO Eitan Boyd said the firm was actively looking at potential acquisitions and would return to the market to raise further funding should it find the right operator.
“£10m isn’t that much for acquisitions,” Boyd said. “And if we do find a good operator in the UK or in Europe we’ll go back to the market and raise more money for it.”
Boyd said that Stride’s expansion will focus on regulated European markets, with the firm currently in talks with operators in Spain, Italy and Denmark.
“Currently 99% of our traffic is from the UK but mainland Europe is our next core objective. Spain, Italy and Denmark are the three bingo-centric growth markets in Europe and we think we’ll find good growth opportunities there,” Boyd said.
Boyd also said there remained opportunities for growth in the UK, despite recent moves by competitor Intertain to lead consolidation of the vertical.
“It is a very fragmented market. Aside from Intertain owning Jackpotjoy, you have 400 sites sharing 40 or 50% of the market. You don’t have to be bigger than Jackpotjoy, but if you can be second or third with a 15% market share the potential is good,” Boyd said.
The firm will also explore further expansion into the casino vertical as despite being bingo-led, around 70% of Stride’s revenues currently come from casino side games.
The company plans to launch two new brands this winter as it continues to integrate Table Top Entertainment, which it acquired last September, and transition existing brands to a new mobile platform.