One of the most successful betting and gaming companies in the world, 888 Holding Plc, is selling its Latvian operations. Famous brands owned by 888, WilliamHill.lv, and MrGreen.lv will be acquired by Paf Consulting Abp. The agreement was signed on May 19th.
The workflow remains intact:
Paf Consulting Abp, the famous Nordic game company, will acquire 888’s Latvian operations, which will be sold for €28.25 million. The initial payment will be €24 million worth, with additional earn-out, which could cost up to €4.25 million and would be paid next year. Since the Group is the owner of 90% of the entity’s shares, the initial amount will be used to cover the general corporate expenses. The transaction is cash-free and debt-free.
The local license in Latvian business will remain intact, despite the fact that it uses the William Hill and Mr Green brands for operating in the country. 888 will enable Paf Consulting to use the same licenses for a limited period of time.
The business will continue to work as usual without any major interruptions and changes in the workflow.
The transaction will be completed in the following weeks after the acquired business ends a relationship with 888’s suppliers and starts working with Paf.
A huge achievement for Paf:
Christer Fahlstedt, CEO of Paf, said: “For Paf, this is a good long-term investment in the Latvian market. We have been operating there since 2018, and we aim to build a stable position in the market. The gaming sites’ current customers will not notice any difference directly when we take over the business. For Paf, it also means that we will have a new office in Riga where more than twenty employees will become a part of Paf.”
This is a huge achievement for Paf since this acquisition will make the company the third largest one in the industry in the Latvian market.
Lord Mendelsohn, Executive Chair of 888, commented: “We continually review our asset base to ensure that we are only holding assets that both contribute to our long-term strategy and will maximize value for our shareholders. As a business, our relatively limited exposure in the Baltic region means that the region is not one of our core or growth markets where we prioritize our investments. The Latvian business is a high-quality, locally regulated business with an excellent team that has built a strong market position. I would like to express my sincere thanks to the team for their dedication during their time with the Group, and I am highly confident that under new ownership with Paf, the business will continue to flourish.”