Finally
Bally’s Intralot acquires Evoke for £2.2bn including debt
BREAKING: Long-running talks reach a conclusion with an all-share deal.
Kalshi building a ‘Bloomberg Terminal’ for high-end predictions traders.
DraftKings open to considering financial trading and RSI applies for PM licensing.
Puts+takes: Boyd Gaming and MGM Resorts.
Hard Rock Bet is growing – we know you know! And we want to bring in some more maestros to make beautiful music in our Sportsbook. You need to be among the very best in the industry to be considered for these roles. Are you up to it?
Deal done
It’s about time: Bally Intralot has reached an all-shares agreement with Evoke to buy the business at an enterprise value of £2.2bn, including £1.9bn of debt and valuing the equity at £243m. The statement said a cash alternative will be available.
The offer represents a 77% premium to the three-month average price of Evoke’s shares ahead of the news breaking about talks in mid-April.
The companies said they hope to complete the deal in either Q426 or Q127.
Closure: The news brings to an end a protracted takeover saga that was first announced in mid-April and which had already had one extension granted last month. The sticking point was the size of the debt pile and the position of major shareholders, the Shaked family.
Bally’s Intalot said it had irrevocable undertakings to accept the deal from 29% of Evoke’s shareholders.
Evoke first announced a strategic review back in December after a look at the potential of the sale of the Italian business widened out into a potential sale of the whole business.
The great unlock: Bally’s Intralot said this morning it hoped to unlock £180m of synergies, and in combining William Hill and 888 with Jackpotjoy and Virgin Casino it will be the second-biggest player in UK iCasino and the #4 operator in UK OSB.
On a pro forma basis, the combination would have produced FY25 revenues of £3.2bn and adj. EBITDA of £856m on adj. EBITDA margins of 27%.
“We are confident that the enlarged group will not just be stronger than before, but stronger than ever,” said Soo Kim, chair of Bally’s.
The end of the road: The deal marks the end of a traumatic period for Evoke, a company that brought together William Hill and 888 back in July 2022 and which has been lumbered with debt ever since.
Diary date: Bally’s Intralot will host a call with analysts at 11am this morning after which E+M will release a deal X-ray note to PRO subscribers.
Increase Operator Margins with EDGE Boost Today!
EDGE Boost is the first dedicated bank account for bettors.
Increase Cash Access: On/Offline with $250k/day debit limits
No Integration or Costs: Compatible today with all operators via VISA debit rails
Incremental Non-Gaming Revenue: Up to 1% operator rebate on transactions
Lower Costs: Increase debit throughput to reduce costs against ACH/Wallets
Eliminate Chargebacks and Disputes
Eliminate Debit Declines
Built-in Responsible Gaming tools
To learn more, contact Matthew Cullen, chief strategy officer: Matthew@edgemarkets.io
Terminal velocity
Screen if you want to go faster: Kalshi is alpha testing a new interface for its most frequent and engaged prediction market customers, which was described to sources at CNBC as a ‘Bloomberg Terminal’ type offering.
The new platform is designed to cater for the sharps on the Kalshi platform.
But it was not clear whether Kalshi would monetize the platform either at launch or down the line.
All seeing eye: Among the features of the new product, seen by CNBC, are the capability to track popular contracts by 24-hour volumes across various categories, see all trades as they’re actively placed and also to view individual contracts’ order books.
Access all areas: In the financial world, the Bloomberg Terminal is the primary platform for all financial trading information, giving access to real-time market data alongside news and in-platform messaging. Notably, access to one screen costs up to $32,000 a year.
Kalshi’s market data is currently available via the Bloomberg platform, but the company also has an arrangement with Polymarket.
Tea’s up: In other related prediction markets news, DraftKings CFO Alan Ellingson told Morning Brew’s After Earnings pod that the company was open to adding financial market products to its DraftKings Predicts offering.
Asked whether DraftKings would “move into stock trading,” Ellingson said he couldn’t speculate on what the company was going to do long term, but “it’s not off the table.”
“We are a four-money entertainment company, there is something thematic about how we engage with customers and we’ll see how that evolves,” he added.
“But we’re going to focus on what we’re good at, which is sports.”
Rush to market: Meanwhile, InGame reported that Rush Street Interactive has submitted its application to the CFTC to become a prediction market exchange, filing for designated contract market (DCM) status.
The application was filed May 20 and is listed as “pending” on the CFTC website.
Speaking to the analysts at Needham back in May, Rush Street CEO Richard Schwartz said the company “is always monitoring” developments.
“Certainly, if anything was to change where the market became attractive for a business with our profile, then we would certainly be able to put steps in place to execute on that,” he added.
That ship has sailed: A report this week from Bank of America on Underdog showed the extent to which RSI would be very late in joining the prediction markets party. Underdog was the first previously sports-only operator to join the PM fray late last year via a partnership with Crypto.com.
It has since purchased Aristotle Exchange, giving it DCM and clearinghouse status and has obtained a futures commission merchant license from the National Futures Association.
BofA said Underdog would be launching a vertically integrated offering via Aristotle ahead of the NFL season.
Full strength: The BofA team pointed out that once the new platform is launched, Underdog will be one of the few prediction markets offering a full stack including FCM, DCM, DCO and market making. “We think vertical integration is a key competitive advantage in prediction markets,” the team added.
It offers better unit economics and more control over the player offering.
They argued this puts the company in a good position ahead of a period with the World Cup and the NFL season looming where competition will “intensify.”
This will present a “real test for Underdog’s product, strategy and marketing efficiency as companies with deep pockets become more aggressive and CACs head higher,” the team said.
+More
Earnings in brief
Allwyn: Q1 revenue of €1.2bn was up 21% YoY with adj. EBITDA rising 24% to €443m. Growth was led by the digital channel and the newly acquired majority stake in DFS operator PrizePicks. Underlying net revenue rose 5%. The company affirmed FY26 guidance of mid- to high-20% and announced a €150m share buyback. See the Earnings Extra edition to be sent to PRO subscribers later today.
Deal talk
Two can play at that game: Accel Entertainment’s subsidiary Toucan Gaming has acquired Louisiana-based VLT casino and truck stop business Rice Palace Truck Stop Casino, expanding its presence in the state.
International Entertainment has issued $102m in convertible notes to DigiPlus Interactive, the second such issuance related to DigiPlus taking a majority stake in the business. DigiPlus is expected to hold a 54% stake in International Entertainment once both debt tranches are converted.
Read across
You’ll take the high Rhodes: Critics have leapt on the news that ex-UK Gambling Commission CEO Andrew Rhodes is to join top figures from gambling sector legal outfit Harris Hagan in a new strategic advisory firm called Hawkbridge as principal consultant. In yesterday’s Compliance+More.
Tick-tock: The American Gaming Association has escalated its campaign against prediction markets, claiming the rapidly expanding sector has already cost US states and tribal governments more than $1bn in lost gaming tax revenue since the start of 2025. In Tuesday’s C+M.
+More careers
The big move: Sands China has appointed Hubert Wang as COO. Wang was president and COO at MGM China until December last year.
DigiPlus has appointed Ping Chen as president, replacing Andy Tsui. Chen was also elected to DigiPlus’ board. IGT has announced the appointment of gaming industry veteran Patrick Ramsey to the board of the parent company of IGT and Everi, Voyager TopCo. Allwyn has appointed Khalid Jones as CEO of its North American business.
Marker Trax and Koin have announced that they will now work under a combined leadership team, with Gary Ellis remaining CEO and Charlie Skinner as president. Meanwhile, Tiffany McGrath has been appointed as CMO. Web3-native crypto iGaming company DeGaming has appointed Ulle Skottling as CEO. Skottling held previous positions at RAW iGaming, Videoslots and NetEnt.
SEO Specialist – Vienna
Head of Compliance – London
Head of VIP Services – Trois-Rivieres
High Roller rollout
Hitting the heights: Having largely pivoted to prediction markets, High Roller Technologies enjoyed a 10% share price boost yesterday after it unveiled a $25m ROLR Challenge ahead of the official prediction markets launch.
While the competition offers a view of the ROLR site, no official launch date was mentioned.
The upcoming offering will be in conjunction with Crypto.com | Derivatives North America.
High Roller earnings debrief
Born again: The micro-cap online casino operator is betting its future on a ROLR-branded US prediction markets launch. This week, CEO Seth Young spoke to E+M about the Crypto.com derivatives deal, the Spike Up acquisition edge, capital discipline against far richer rivals, and why he thinks ROLR is the only pure-play prediction markets stock in the public market.
See yesterday’s Earnings Debrief edition (PRO subs only)
OpticOdds is now the first sportsbook API available inside Claude.
Your trading team can now query live odds, fixtures, player props, market data and more - all in a single sentence.
Setup takes two minutes. If you want to see it in action, get in touch at opticodds.com/contact
Puts+takes
Boyd Gaming
I know what you did last summer: In initiating with a Buy on the locals to Downtown Vegas to regional operator Boyd Gaming, the team at Texas Capital noted that, as it turned out, the company sold its 5% stake in FanDuel for $1.8bn at a time when Flutter’s stock was at an all-time high.
Flutter has since lost two-thirds of its value from those heady days last July.
Knowing the value of a dollar: But while Boyd remains cashed up, the analysts noted the “purse storing are in the right hands,” as the company avoided the opco/propco wave of transactions and has only been involved in “well executed” acquisitions, dating back to 2018.
Notably, the team sees Boyd as a potential buyer should there be any disposals coming from the Fertitta buyout of Caesars.
As the analysts said, it has potentially “billions in dry powder” given its low leverage of ~1.8x.
“Boyd is one of a small handful of operators with both the ability and track record to be highly opportunistic,” they wrote.
MGM Resorts
CreditSights said a potential acquisition of MGM Resorts would have limited impact on MGM China’s debt profile, as any additional borrowing would likely sit at the parent company. But the analysts warned that a heavily debt-funded transaction could pressure MGM Resorts’ credit metrics and potentially trigger rating downgrade concerns, although the lack of deal details makes the likelihood difficult to assess.
Meanwhile, Seaport said MGM China “becomes an interesting piece in the puzzle that is MGM.” They noted the business has “significantly outperformed” the Macau market over the last few years and retained more market share over the past few quarters than had been expected. The team added that should an MGM deal be consummated, there is “some chance that People Inc. may look to divest ownership in MGM China.”
Still overpaying for geolocation? Find out why over 25 operators have upgraded to GeoLocs!
Connections
Playson has secured another partnership in Ontario with Caesars Entertainment, bringing a new portfolio of titles to Caesars Palace Online Casino, Horseshoe Online Casino and Caesars Sportsbook & Casino. The Mill Adventure and operator and aggregator Casimba Gaming have announced a strategic partnership. Greentube has further expanded its footprint in South Africa through a partnership with leading regional operator World Sports Betting.
BetMGM has recruited ice hockey legend Peter Forsberg as its new ambassador for the Swedish market. Meanwhile, LeoVegas has migrated its brands in Sweden onto its proprietary Tiger sportsbook platform.
Request Network has expanded its crypto-payment capabilities for the iGaming industry, supporting multiple blockchains, including Ethereum, BNB, Tron, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism and Base.
Habanero’s games are now accessible in Greece after the company received a gaming license from the Hellenic Gaming Commission. AGS’ latest iteration of its Rakin’ Bacon! slot family, Der Rakin’ Bacon!, debuted at the San Manuel’s Yaamava casino in southern California. Meridian’s Expanse Studios and MaxBet now have a strategic distribution agreement to launch Expanse’s online casino games on MaxBet’s platform in Serbia.
Upcoming earnings
Jun 8: Evoke AGM
Jun 9: Codere Online Earnings Debrief
Jun 16: Penn Entertainment AGM
Payment Experience Management goes beyond the transaction itself, ensuring every piece of the payment journey is optimized for better outcomes—for your customers, your team and your brand.
For customers, remove friction in the deposit and payout process
For operations, cut down on the cost and complexity of managing payments
For brand, grow trust with built-in fraud protection and outage prevention
PayNearMe’s PayXMTM platform was built on the promise of Payment Experience Management. Meet the team at SBC Americas to learn how we can help.
An +More Media publication.
For sponsorship inquiries email scott@andmore.media.
