NYX Gaming Group Ltd majority shareholders voted in favor of the company being acquired by Scientific Games for $631 million. Once the acquisition is completed, it will enable Las Vegas based Scientific Games to have a major presence in national sports betting and be a dominant force in the sports betting industry.
On Wednesday, shareholders cast their votes that represented 99.6 percent of the shares of NYX during a "scheme of arrangement" sanctioned by a Guernsey court and worked under the corporate law of the Crown dependency. Afterwards, shareholders that represented 99.8 percent of the shares offered a resolution that supported the court vote.
According to Guernsey law, acquisition votes should receive a minimum of 75 support from shareholders or else the acquisition won't be permitted. The final hurdle that the acquisition process must clear will be on January 5, 2018 and it will take place in the form of a hearing before the Guernsey Royal Court.
This process requires the judge to approve the voting results and give the go ahead for the acquisition to go through. Over the past month, Scientific Games went through many measures to ensure that the acquisition would be seamless, including buying up shares and warrants of NYX stock in order to boost their chances for an affirmative vote.
Last Sunday, Scientific and NYX made the announcement that Pollard Equities Ltd. entered into an agreement to support the acquisition bid of Scientific. Pollard Equities holds 4 million warrants and 8.6 million shares on NYX.
In a statement, Kevin Sheehan, Scientific Games President and CEO said
We are thrilled by the strong support from NYX shareholders and we are very excited about our combined companies’ future growth potential. By bringing together Scientific Games and NYX, we will create a world leader in digital gaming and sports betting, a company with an unrivaled, end-to-end product portfolio and an innovative driving force in the industry
NYX CEO Matt Davey viewed the acquisition as a win-win for both organizations as it serves the best interest of both sets of shareholders. Davey says NYX's merger with Scientific Games, is very exciting because Scientific Games has massive global reach, extensive resources and top content in the industry.
Scientific Games acquisition of NYX was earlier opposed by William Hill who is a competitor in the sports betting industry. The British bookmaker wanted Scientific Games to provide an assurance that they would use the NYX-designed OpenBet wagering platform in a fair manner that ensures fair competition. Scientific Gaming opposed the demand stating and termed the measure as anticompetitive.
About the Author
