Interactive
US – GAN makes sports betting move with Coolbet acquisition
By Lewis - 17 November 2020
GAN has announced that it has signed a definitive purchase agreement to acquire Coolbet for approximately €149m.
The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021, subject to regulatory review and the satisfaction of certain closing conditions. GAN expects to fund the acquisition with new capital.
The acquisition will leverage Coolbet’s proprietary sports betting technology, which is anticipated to be integrated into GAN’s turnkey technology solutions for launch in the U.S. RMiG market by second half of 2021.
GAN has stated that it will welcome over 175 new global employees and engineering talent, over 84,000 active customers in the third quarter of 2020, and a retention rate of 85 per cent quarter-on-quarter in 2020.
Dermot Smurfit, CEO of GAN, commented: “From the onset of our IPO we have continued to enhance and perfect our internet gaming software- as-a-service solutions for the US market. As a part of that growth strategy, we have been clear that we needed to add a best-in-class sportsbook engine to round out our real money iGaming platform, and we believe Coolbet is the perfect fit for both GAN and our customers.Coolbet launched in early 2016 in a hyper-competitive online market in Northern Europe and subsequently expanded into Latin America and Canada over the last two years.
“Since its launch, Coolbet has proven that its sportsbook offering is one of the best in the market today. Coolbet’s award winning user interface and proprietary technical platform will enable us to quickly introduce the sportsbook offering to our land-based casino customers across the US, who need a flexible and customisable solution to online gaming,” he added. “Coolbet brings one of the most experienced teams of engineers in the industry and their technology is built on a similar architectural design as our own, which is anticipated to make the integration process fairly seamless.
“The timing of the acquisition ideally positions GAN to leverage its growing customer base, as well as the momentum that sports legislation has seen with the election results in Maryland, Louisiana, South Dakota, and Tennessee.”
Mr. Smurfit added: “Additionally, Coolbet is more than just the best sportsbook platform we vetted during our process. Coolbet has a well-established global business, a strong and loyal B2C customer base, and a diversified revenue stream. They are expert marketers and have grown their top-line over 46 per cent in highly competitive and established markets in Northern Europe, Latin American and Canada. We will not only achieve scale and diversity across our revenue streams through this combination, but we also see a strong opportunity to leverage Coolbet’s expertise and relationships in other markets where our industry-leading B2B SaaS platform can be deployed.”
“In summary, this union brings two of the best-in class, high-growth offerings in the iGaming space together, and makes a powerful combination. We expect to achieve significant revenue synergies across both platforms over the long-term and have structured the deal to be immediately accretive. We are excited to welcome the Coolbet team to GAN and look forward to building one of the most complete solutions in our industry. We view this acquisition as part of our unwavering commitment to shareholder value and our long-term growth strategy.”
