Unibet acquires Stan James Online for £19m
Stockholm-listed operator eyes major push into the UK online sports betting market
Unibet is set for a major expansion into the UK market after the operator this morning announced a deal to acquire the digital business of Gibraltar-based firm Stan James for £19m.
The Stockholm-listed operator is expected to complete the acquisition of Stan James Online in the second half of Q3 2015 with the £19m paid fully in cash and based on a multiple of approximately 6x the firm’s 2015 EBITDA.
While the deal does not include the company’s 90 UK betting shops, under the terms of the agreement all of Stan James’ 150 Gibraltar-based employees will now switch employment to Unibet once the acquisition receives regulatory approval.
Unibet has made no secret of its appetite for an acquisition and in its Q1 2015 financial results revealed it incurred a £0.2m due diligence cost during the quarter for a possible acquisition which failed to materialise.
Last September eGaming Review also reported that Stan James was in advanced discussions with a Malta-licensed operator over a potential sale of the business.
CEO Henrik Tjärnström said he was confident the acquisition would add significant value to the Group and help the company strengthen its position in the UK sports betting market.
“Stan James as an operator is one of the most well-respected in the UK market with particular strengths in horse-racing and other British sports,” he said.
“Over time we see a significant potential to increase the breadth of the Stan James product range, such as live streaming, casino and improving the mobile offering,” Tjärnström added.
In figures released today, Stan James’ online arm recorded £10.5m in gross winnings revenue for the five months ended 31 May 2015 and posted £1.4m in EBITDA during the same period.
“There is a substantial market opportunity in the UK following the re-regulation,” Denis Kelly, CEO of Stan James Online, said.
“Through the combination of Unibet’s expertise in marketing and financial strength, together with Stan James’ high quality sports and racing betting offering aimed at the UK, I am confident that we can increase substantially the combined Group’s market share in the UK,” he added.