GGRAsia – Novomatic takes controlling stake in Ainsworth: official

Novomatic takes controlling stake in Ainsworth: official

Jan 08, 2018 Newsdesk Industry Talk, Latest News, Top of the deck

Austrian gaming equipment supplier Novomatic AG has completed the acquisition of a 52-percent stake in Australian slot machine maker Ainsworth Game Technology Ltd, the latter confirmed in a Friday filing to the Australian Securities Exchange.

Both firms had previously said the deal was scheduled to be concluded on January 5, after it was announced the agreement had received all relevant regulatory approvals.

It was in February 2016 that Len Ainsworth – Ainsworth Game’s founder – and Novomatic agreed the deal under which Mr Ainsworth was to sell 172.1 million ordinary shares to Novomatic, subject to regulatory and licence approvals. At the time, it was announced the offer from Novomatic was AUD2.75 (US$2.16) in cash per share, indicating a transaction valued at approximately AUD473.3 million.

Ainsworth Game said in a press release issued on Friday that Mr Ainsworth would still retain a 1.87 percent holding in Ainsworth Game.

“Given the completion of the sale, Mr Ainsworth has resigned as an executive director of Ainsworth Game effective immediately. Mr Ainsworth will continue to support Ainsworth Game as a consultant for a period of 12 months,” the document added.

“This is an historic and important day for Ainsworth Game, marking the next stage in our development,” the firm’s chairman, Graeme Campbell, said in a statement included in Friday’s release.

He added: “We have a new, international, industry leading majority partner in Novomatic. As shareholders recognised in voting in favour of the transaction, this partnership strengthens Ainsworth Game, providing us with the resources and support to leverage our highly regarded gaming technology and expertise to more effectively compete in the world’s gaming markets.”

Thomas Graf, Novomatic’s chief technology officer, said as quoted in the same release: “We are attracted to Ainsworth Game because of its superior gaming technology, clear industry expertise and impressive international footprint, especially in the U.S. market.”