Entain offers US$341.6m for Enlabs

The company has recommended shareholders back the purchase of the sports betting and gaming group with a strong presence in the Baltics.

Malta.- Gaming giant Entain (formerly known as GVC Holdings) has recommended that shareholders approve the acquisition of global sports-betting and gaming group, Enlabs AB.

The offer was made through Entain’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Bwin Holdings (Malta), for a value of US$341.6m.

Enlabs operates in the Baltics and, according to Entain, is the market leader in Latvia, the second largest in Estonia and is among the five largest operators in Lithuania.

It is headquartered in Riga, with offices in Tallinn, Vilnius, Minsk, Malta, Marbella and Stockholm.

In the filling, the company said: “The Baltic region represents a highly attractive, locally regulated and fast-growing gaming market.

“Entain does not currently operate in these geographies and entry is aligned with Entain’s strategy to focus on growth markets which are locally regulated and taxed.

“The acquisition of Enlabs represents a synergistic combination with a pre-eminent operator, with high operating standards and a market-leading customer proposition.”

The Malta-based firm said the acquisition would enable Enlabs to grow within existing markets and also expand into adjacent ones, including Belarus and Ukraine.

Shay Segev, CEO of Entain, said: “The acquisition of Enlabs is perfectly aligned with our strategy of expanding across new regulated international markets.

“We are hugely excited by the growth opportunities it presents both in its existing markets and through new market opportunities.”

According to a Thursday filling, the Independent Bid Committee of Enlabs has unanimously resolved to recommend shareholders to accept the offer, and was backed by major stakeholders that collectively hold 42.2 per cent of the total number of Enlabs shares.