The Fanatics Betting and Gaming (FBG) arm of sports retail giant Fanatics has agreed a deal to acquire the PointsBet US division of PointsBet Holdings for $150.0m.
Under the agreement, which remains subject to shareholder approval and certain regulatory and other conditions, PointsBet will retain both its Canadian and Australian business and operations and continue as an Australian Stock Exchange-listed company.
PointsBet will keep hold of its proprietary sports wagering, racing and igaming platform and be granted a perpetual, royalty-free licence to exploit the Banach technology assets, which were acquired by PointsBet in March 2021.
The deal also states that PointsBet will retain its teams in Australia, Canada and India, as well as its Australian-based technologists, traders and quants.
Other aspects of the deal include that PointsBet will provide services to FBG prior to the final closing of the deal and be reimbursed for the cost of these services by FBG.
In addition, the existing commercial commitments to NBCUniversal will be transferred in full to FBG, while NBCUniversal released PointsBet from guarantee obligations under its media services agreement and waived its right to exercise equity options previously issued.
PointsBet shareholders will vote on the proposed acquisition at a meeting late next month, with the PointsBet board having unanimously recommended that shareholders vote in favour of the deal.
Should the transaction go through, PointsBet would distribute to shareholders the net sale proceeds, after applicable taxes and transaction costs, together with the majority of its corporate cash reserves that will be surplus to the needs of the remaining business. This distribution of capital is estimated to be approximately AU$1.07 to AU$1.10 per share.
