IGT Plc has finally made a move to once again expand its B2B online casino offering, by securing definitive terms to acquire Malta-based online casino games provider iSoftBet.
Last month, the IGT board notified investors that they have agreed on a €160 million (£133m or $174m) cash deal to acquire iSoftBet, undertaking an acquisition that will "more than double the IGT PlayDigital content library to approximately 225 proprietary games".
Other than that, IGT will further boost its online casino inventory by acquiring iSoftBet's proprietary-built aggregation platform to distribute third-party games to clients, and the developer's data-led promotional and user engagement tools.
The deal marks IGT's first online casino-centric acquisition since its former GTECH unit acquired mobile games supplier Probability Inc in 2014 for £20 million.
In its Fiscal Year 2021 results, IGT revealed it had secured €950 million in net-cash profits, having completed the divestment of its Lottomatica Italian gambling subsidiary to Gamenet Group. The company declared that all FY2021 profits would be used to re-develop IGT's new online gambling profile under the new leadership of Group Chief Executive Vince Sadusky.
Completing his first M&A transaction as IGT CEO, Sadusky said, "The acquisition of iSoftBet will provide market-tested proprietary digital content, advanced game aggregation capabilities, scalable promotional tools, analytics and strong creative talent to IGT's PlayDigital operations.
"This will enhance PlayDigital's competitive capabilities with a proven, complementary content portfolio across Europe and North America as we provide best-in-class games and technology to our fast-growing iGaming customers."
First launched in 2010, iSoftBet has become a leading aggregator solutions and games provider, that currently services a B2B client base of +260 operators with its collection of 125 proprietary games, and access to more than 4,600 third-party titles through its game aggregation platform.
During FY2021, the Malta business generated revenue of approximately €30 million and EBITDA of €8 million.
It is expected that the acquisition will be completed by Q2 2022, which will see IGT expanding its online casino and games operations incorporating iSoftBet's 350 employees who work across 20 European jurisdictions.
Source: https://sbcnews.co.uk/europe/2022/04/11/igt-expands-casino-suite-executing-e160m-takeover-of-isoftbet/
