Baker McKenzie successfully advised ASX-listed PointsBet Holdings Limited (PointsBet) on the sale of its US business to Fanatics Betting and Gaming (FBG) after shareholders endorsed the AUD 333 million sale on Friday (30 June).
PointsBet shareholders approved the AUD 333 million sale after a protracted bidding process that culminated with FBG improving its offer by 50% following a late offer from DraftKings.
Baker McKenzie’s lead partner on the deal, Lance Sacks stated: “We were pleased to play our small part in adding value with novel legal solutions by incorporating a ‘fiduciary out’ for a superior third party proposal in a private M&A context, which facilitated a competitive bidding process for the US business that ultimately enabled PointsBet to secure significantly more value through the improved offer by FBG.”
In explaining the transaction, Lance commented: “PointsBet operates separate instances of its propriety online bookmaking and iGaming tech stack in Australia, Canada and 15 US jurisdictions. As part of the deal the tech stack and market leading OddsFactory capabilities will be duplicated so that the US business and remaining Australian and Canadian businesses can continue to run on a stand-alone basis and each have the ability to further develop their technology and product capabilities. The deal required a significant amount of IP expertise which happily played to our leading Technology practices’ forehand.”
PointsBet’s Group General Counsel, Andrew Hensher stated: “This is a terrific outcome for our shareholders (subject to regulatory approvals). The US business and staff will have a strong future as part of the Fanatics Group and PointsBet will continue to build on the opportunities in Australia and Canada underpinned by a strong balance sheet.”
PointsBet will retain control of its Australian and Canadian divisions whilst freeing up significant capital for other strategic priorities.
Lance was assisted by a Baker McKenzie team comprising: Rick Troiano, Adrian Lawrence, Yini Chong and Sarah Nouv.