iGB North America magazine IGBNA Aug/Sep | Page 55

Business and Finance

from 1,620p), 21% below the current price
and, in our recommendation system, a Sell.”
Despite the confusion over the direction
of the share price, Betfair has been busy
justifying the run-up with the announcement
of a B2B exchange product as well as final
financial results for 2015 which saw a
whopping 45% increase in profit. The main
driver behind the results was the increased
push in marketing and mobile. Since hitting
its current high in early June, Betfair’s share
price has stabilized.
Amaya’s (+9.5%) share price bounced
back after experiencing increasing pressure
on its share price since the beginning of
the year. During the period, the company
announced the completion of its sale of
Cadillac Jack, its cash cow prior to the
acquisition of PokerStars. Toward the end of
the period, it appeared that Amaya, working
in conjunction with leading grey operator
GVC Holdings (-2.7%), was going to be the
victor over 888 in the race to win the hand
of Bwin.Party (+15.3%). The deal seemed
so certain that bwin.party even issued a
statement that it would work with GVC to
reach an agreement in the following days.
Interestingly, the announcement failed to
include any mention of Amaya. GVC offered
100 pence per share, valuing bwin.party at
$1.4bn.
In the end, 888 (-3.8%) was the victor,
with the bwin.party board announcing
its unanimous decision. The deal would
certainly put 888 in a powerful position
in the US market, giving it 100% of the
regulated online poker space. This also may
put Amaya in a more vulnerable position,
as many viewed the PartyPoker component
of bwin.party as the potential Trojan horse
for Amaya’s entry into the US online gaming
market. It would have also provided Amaya
with the established sports betting platform
that it so much desired.
The timing also couldn’t have been more
perfect for PartyPoker founders Ruth and
Russ DeLeon, coming as the 24-month

window for to sell their 7.16% share of the
company was about to close, as p