Inspired Entertainment acquires a UK subsidiary of NOVOMATIC in a $120 million deal to expand presence in UK gaming machine sector
Gaming technology company Inspired Entertainment, Inc. has entered into an agreement to purchase Gaming Technology Group (NTG) of Novomatic UK Ltd., the UK division of Austrian gambling giant NOVOMATIC Group.
Inspired will pay the EUR equivalent of $120 million in cash for the fellow gaming group. The transaction is subject to certain customary adjustments and regulatory approvals and is expected to be closed in the third quarter of the year.
The deal will significantly expand Inspired’s presence across the UK gambling machine market. The company already supplies Category B2 and B3 gaming terminals to UK retail operators. NTG and its subsidiaries supply Category B3, C, and D gaming machines to pubs, arcades, motorway services areas, and holiday resorts across the UK.
Once the acquisition of NTG closes, Inspired would manage over 75,000 gaming machines in the UK and Europe.
Commenting on the recently announced deal, Inspired’s Executive Chairman, Lorne Weil, said that the transaction was transformational for his company as it would enable them “to dramatically increase the size, scale and scope of our business by combining our highly complementary, but largely non-overlappng, businesses.”
Inspired Entertainment was formed in late 2016 after acquisition company Hydra Industries Acquisition Group bought Inspired Gaming Group from funds managed by private equity firm Vitruvian Partners LLP for £200 million.
Expected Benefits from the Deal
Inspired said it expects the deal to achieve synergies of between $12.3 million and $13.3 million through shared costs and increased scale. The company also expects to benefit from “shared manufacturing, engineering, software development, field maintenance, and customer service.”
Of its plans about the future of the combined entity, Inspired said in a press release issued Tuesday that it would draw on its own core strengths as well on those of NTG to broaden its portfolio of products available, bring diverse gaming products across new sectors and territories, accelerate key growth initiatives and provide “enhanced capabilities, systems, field service and content.”
The deal will see Inspired expand its UK business and enter new customer segments. As the company and NTG operate different categories of gaming machines, there will be very little overlap of existing customers.
Mr. Weil said that the two companies, while operating in different segments, “have much in common in terms of providing resources for our customers and their consumers.” The official added that the combination of the two gaming machine suppliers would provide “additional resources for our core businesses and combine the great content and machine portfolio from each.”
The transaction does not include the casino assets of Astra Games Limited, one of the NTG subsidiaries that Inspired will take over, it became known. These assets will be transferred to Novomatic UK Gaming UK Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of NOVOMATIC GROUP, at or prior the closure of the NTG acquisition.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on the day’s top casino news stories.
