Business Wire

FINALTO-S.P.V.-LTD

2.8.2021 19:43:08 CEST | Business Wire | Press release

Share
The Consortium Welcomes Playtech’s Confirmed Recommendation for Its Binding Agreement to Acquire Finalto and Urges Investors to Vote in Favour at the Playtech Adjourned General Meeting on 18 August 2021

Finalto S.P.V. Ltd, the consortium led by Barinboim Group and backed by Leumi Partners Limited and Menora Mivtachim Group, together with key members of the Finalto Business' management team (together the "Consortium"), welcomes the announcement by Playtech plc (“Playtech”) confirming its recommendation that shareholders vote in favour of the Consortium’s binding agreement for Finalto Group (“Finalto) (the “Binding Agreement”).

Playtech announced today that following its engagement with Gopher Investments (“Gopher”) over the past three weeks, it has not received responses from Gopher to a number of its questions and therefore Playtech has not yet been able to achieve the necessary clarity on Gopher's ultimate ownership and funding structure, source of funds or ability to obtain the required regulatory clearances .

Shareholders should ask why Gopher continues to hide and should also be suspicious of Gopher’s credibility, particularly given that disclosure is crucial when buying a highly regulated business. Furthermore, the firm associated with Gopher, TT Bond Partners, is a small boutique brokerage that raises money from Chinese investors. Gopher’s behaviour has not been well received by the market; since it first announced its interest, Playtech’s share price has fallen by nearly 17%1 .

The Consortium’s Binding Agreement for Finalto offers considerable value and certainty and puts an end to the arduous 18-month sale process

  • Voting in favour of the Consortium’s Binding Agreement, which has been unanimously supported by Playtech’s board of directors, ensures Playtech receipt of the considerable sale proceeds soon allowing it to focus on its core gambling business. The Binding Agreement was agreed after beating other rival bidders in a lengthy, arduous and transparent sale process that was run by UBS and offers far greater certainty that the transaction will complete and pass the stringent regulatory approvals.
  • The level of volatility and risk that the Finalto business is subject to and the performance headwinds that it faces, led to the ultimate price that was agreed and Playtech recommending the Consortium’s Binding Agreement to acquire Finalto. Indeed, in the original circular to shareholders, Playtech itself comments on Finalto’s tumultuous performance in 2021, underlining the businesses underperformance relative to prior years.
  • If shareholders vote against the Binding Agreement the Consortium will fall apart. Should this happen, shareholders need to reflect on the likelihood that Gopher would follow through on its indicative interest at the level they purport to offer for Finalto.
  • Voting in favour of the Consortium removes the considerable risk, delay and additional costs associated with yet another sale process, which would not be concluded until late 2022 at the earliest. Such a delay would be considerably destabilising to the Finalto business, which has already been subject to a lengthy sale process and significant market speculation.
  • From the outset of the transaction, the Consortium’s Binding Agreement was and remains fully financed by the three blue chip multinationals comprising the Consortium and a reputable senior lender. Completion is subject to Playtech’s shareholders’ approval and final regulatory approvals only, which the Consortium is already six months into and has submitted the required arduous change of control paperwork to each of the regulators in multiple jurisdictions.
  • The Consortium welcomes shareholders and proxy advisors ISS and Glass Lewis to engage with it in order to answer any questions regarding its Binding Agreement, which it believe provides the best value to Playtech.

The Consortium urges shareholders to follow Playtech’s Board recommendation and vote in favour of its Binding Agreement to acquire Finalto at the General Meeting due to take place on 18 August 2021.

The Original Circular, the Supplementary Circular and the Notice of Adjourned General Meeting are available on Playtech's website at www.investors.playtech.com/shareholder-information/general-meeting.aspx . Shareholders who have already submitted their proxy electronically at www.investorcentre.co.uk/eproxy and wish to change their voting instruction, may do so by submitting a revised Form of Proxy electronically at www.investorcentre.co.uk/eproxy .

The Consortium’s previous announcements are available here (7 July 2021) and here (9 July 2021).

-ENDS-

About the Consortium

The Consortium is a company incorporated in Israel, established for the purpose of acquiring the Finalto Business. The Consortium is being funded by a group consisting of Barinboim Group, Leumi Partners Limited and Menora Mivtachim Group and by senior secured debt financing from The Phoenix Insurance Company Limited and certain of its affiliates. The Consortium will be supported by key members of the Finalto Business' management team that will transfer with the Finalto Business, including Ron Hoffman (Chief Executive Officer of the Finalto Business) and Liron Greenbaum (Chief Operations Officer of the Finalto Business).

Barinboim Group is a private equity and venture capital firm based in Tel Aviv. Barinboim Group invests in companies operating in the media sectors.

Leumi Partners Limited is the merchant and investment banking arm of Bank Leumi (TASE: LUMI), one of the two largest banking groups in Israel. Leumi Partners Limited is based in Tel Aviv and offers direct equity investment in sectors such as technology media and telecom, consumer & retail, and healthcare. Leumi Partners Limited's line of business includes conducting investments and providing services such as underwriting, financial analysis and research, strategic advice, mergers & acquisitions, and raising equity and debt.

Menora Mivtachim Group is one of Israel's five largest insurance & finance groups. The group specializes in asset management, manages the largest pension fund in Israel - and is the largest General Insurer in Israel and the market leader in Motor Insurance sector. The group operates through its subsidiaries, in all sectors of Life Insurance, Long/Mid/Short -Term Savings, General Insurance and Health Insurance. In addition, the group is active in the capital markets and finance sectors, including, Financial Portfolio Management, Underwriting and worldwide real estate investments.


1 Source: Capital IQ. July 30 close price over July 2 close price

About Business Wire

Business Wire
Business Wire
101 California Street, 20th Floor
CA 94111 San Francisco

http://businesswire.com

Subscribe to releases from Business Wire

Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Latest releases from Business Wire

Daiichi Sankyo Appoints Markus Kosch to Lead Europe Business as Part of New Commercialization Organization24.8.2026 10:00:00 CEST | Press release

Daiichi Sankyo (TSE: 4568) today announced the appointment of Markus Kosch, MD, as Head of Europe Business, effective April 1, 2027. In this role, he will lead the company's European business within the new globally integrated Commercialization Unit and serve as General Manager of Daiichi Sankyo Europe GmbH, with legal responsibility for the company in Europe. The appointment reflects the next phase of growth of Daiichi Sankyo under its Five-Year Business Plan and the establishment of a new Commercialization Unit. Within this new structure, Markus Kosch will bring together the Oncology and Specialty businesses in Europe under one integrated leadership model to help bring innovative medicines to more patients across the region. For the past five years, Markus Kosch has led the Daiichi Sankyo Oncology Business Division in Europe and Canada, overseeing a period of significant growth and preparing the organization for an increasingly expanding oncology portfolio. Prior to joining Daiichi S

European Commission Approves DAYBU® (trofinetide) as the First and Only Treatment for Neurobehavioral Symptoms of Rett Syndrome in the European Union24.8.2026 09:01:00 CEST | Press release

Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ACAD) today announced that the European Commission (EC) has granted marketing authorization for DAYBU (trofinetide) for the treatment of neurobehavioral symptoms of Rett syndrome in adults and pediatric patients aged five years and older, making it the first and only treatment approved for Rett syndrome in the European Union (EU). “The approval of DAYBU marks a significant milestone for the Rett syndrome community in the EU and advances our mission to bring this innovative treatment to patients and families who have long faced a profound unmet medical need,” said Catherine Owen Adams, Acadia’s Chief Executive Officer. “For people living with Rett syndrome, a devastating rare neurodevelopmental disorder, there have been no approved treatment options in the EU. We are proud to make DAYBU available and look forward to supporting patients, caregivers, and healthcare providers gain access to treatment." The DAYBU marketing authorization in the EU is prim

ORZEYFUL (oveporexton) Approved in Japan as the First and Only Medicine to Treat the Underlying Cause of Narcolepsy Type 124.8.2026 08:36:00 CEST | Press release

Discovered by Takeda in Japan, ORZEYFUL has the Potential to Redefine Care Beyond Individual Symptom Management for Adults Living with Narcolepsy Type 1 (NT1) Landmark Phase 3 Studies Demonstrated Significant and Meaningful Improvements Across the Full Range of NT1 Symptoms Evaluated in Clinical Trials Compared to Placebo Milestone Marks Third Major Regulatory Approval Secured for ORZEYFUL Around the World Takeda (TOKYO:4502/NYSE:TAK) announced that the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) approved the use of ORZEYFUL (oveporexton) for the treatment of narcolepsy type 1 (NT1, narcolepsy with cataplexy) in adults. ORZEYFUL is a first-in-class oral orexin receptor 2 (OX2R) agonist and the only medicine indicated in Japan to treat the disease holistically rather than individual symptoms. The discovery of this new class of medicine originated in Takeda's laboratories in Japan. Takeda is proceeding with launch preparations and expects to make ORZEYFUL available as quickly

Fasset Hits $1B Valuation as SBI Group Leads $68M Series C to Scale AI-Powered Stablecoin Neobanking24.8.2026 08:03:00 CEST | Press release

Round led by SBI Group follows $51 million Series B raise in May 2026, marking ascent as one of the fastest-growing neobanking platforms. Capital will expand Own Network and deepen AI across stablecoin settlement, tokenization, and corridor banking. Fasset now processes more than $40 billion in annualized transaction volume, serving 3 million+ wallets and more than 1,000 enterprises across 125 countries. Fasset, the AI-powered stablecoin neobanking platform, today announced it has raised $68 million in Series C funding at a $1 billion valuation. The financing was led by SBI Group and follows Fasset’s $51 million Series B earlier this year, which brought Speedinvest onto the cap table alongside a group of strategic investors. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260823503947/en/ Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Co-Founder and CEO, Fasset The new capital will support the expansion of Own Network, Fasset’s regulated financial

Zanders Expands DACH Region with New Office in Vienna, Austria24.8.2026 07:11:00 CEST | Press release

Zanders, the global treasury, risk, and technology consultancy, today announced a significant expansion of its DACH region with the opening of a new office in Vienna. The move builds on Zanders' continued growth across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and marks another step in the firm's strategy of deepening its presence in the markets where client demand for specialized treasury, risk, and corporate finance advisory is growing fastest. DACH has been one of Zanders' priority regions for several years, with the firm steadily expanding its team and client base across Germany and Switzerland. Austria represents a natural next step in that growth: in conversations with clients in the market, Zanders has seen growing interest in treasury transformation and financing support, as companies work through interest rate volatility, refinancing needs, and a broader shift toward more digitized, centralized treasury operations. The new Vienna office allows Zanders to be closer to clients' operati

In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.

Visit our pressroom
World GlobeA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.HiddenA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.Eye