Online gaming software and solutions provider Playtech has confirmed that it plans to float on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange in late March. Playtech's owners intend to raise about £175 million (US$300 million) through the placement offering of about 25 percent of their shareholding in the company. The float should earn the company a valuation of more than £550 million ($950 million).
The company's largest shareholder, an Israeli entrepreneur named Teddy Sagi who owns about 60 percent of the company, will sell between £55 million ($96million) and £70 million ($122 million) worth of shares. Sagi reportedly wishes to maintain a shareholding of more than 50 percent in the company, which ought to leave him with a stake valued between £220 million ($384 million) and £275 million ($480 million) after the float.
Roger Withers was recently appointed non-executive chairman of Playtech. Withers also serves as chairman of Arena Leisure, a British company whose joint venture partnership with British Sky Broadcasting is responsible for dedicated television channel At The Races, and from September 2000 to October 2005 he served as senior non-executive director for Sportech, operator of the Littlewoods brand of gaming.
At the beginning of February Playtech's former finance director Avigur Zmora was appointed as the company's chief executive. Commenting on the float to eGaming Review, Smora stated, "The IPO will raise the profile of the company and provide it with a significant platform for growth. We look forward to developing the business."
The company has enlisted the aid of Collins Stewart, the offshore division of stockbroking and investment management firm Collins Steward Tullet Plc, as sole bookrunner for the float. Corporate banking and finance firm Seymour Pierce has been appointed as joint broker.
Playtech will undergo its roadshow over the next few weeks and hopes to list on the AIM by the end of March.
Last year Playtech generated profits of $36 million on revenue of $48 million.
Playtech History and Background
Playtech employs about 250 employees, most of whom are based in Estonia performing software development. The company is also in the process of opening an office on the Isle of Man.
The company was founded in 1999 by entrepreneurs from the casino, software engineering and multimedia industries. Playtech launched its first online casino, Club Dice Casino, in 2001 and soon followed it with the launch of Swiss Casino, which marked its first major deal with an existing online operator.
In early 2002 Playtech introduced a new generation of client software featuring 45 new games and animated 3D graphics. The company then offered a variety of new features in the summer of 2002, including live online support, refer-a-friend for cash and prizes, a compulsive gambling prevention tool and brand new games.
In 2003 Playtech introduced its Live Gaming Sytem, which allows real-time video streaming of live dealers with which gamblers can play and chat. Playtech also landed GoldenPalace.com, one of the largest and most successfully marketed online casinos in the world, as a licensee in 2003 as well as the Bayview Group, a gaming solution provider in Asia that launched gaming sites MegasportsCasino.com and Dafa888.com with the Asian gaming community in mind.
In 2004 Playtech opened a Live Gaming facility in the Asian Pacific sector which offered customers video streaming technology and live dealers and a support center with 24-hour help in Chinese. Playtech's iPoker network also debuted in 2004.
All of Playtech's gaming products are based on a platform that permits the products to be freely incorporated as stand-alone applications that are available in several European and Asian languages and can support multiple currencies. The platform provides random number generation, affiliate and web tracking, transaction processing, system security and player base management.
Licensees are responsible for the day-to-day management of their online casinos and do so via Playtech's backend console known as the Admin, upon which all of Platech's applications rely.
Playtech's live Live Gaming system utilizes live streaming technology to allow players to view a dealer throwing dice, dealing cards and spinning the roulette wheel in real-time. Operators can choose to run their own live studio and employ their own dealers, equipment and infrastructure or they may opt to have those services supplied by a third-party provider.
The company's Land-Based Kiosk System for the most part provides a similar gaming experience to that of its Online Casino System. Intended for multi-location environments, the Land-Based product features a modified kiosk-tailored client, several payment options, and a choice of kiosk type and design options.
Playtech's poker product combines both a 2D view from above the poker table and a 3D lateral view, and it features range of animated avatars as well as a full-screen viewing mode and optional embedded side games like Blackjack, Video Poker and Progressive Bonus Stage Slots. Operators may opt to join in Playtech's iPoker network, which aggregates the players from all Playtech poker licensees in order to increase the amount of liquidity and number of games. Alternatively, operators may choose a stand-alone business model, which would not aggregate players into the iPoker network, or a licensed network model, which would allow the operator to sub-license its own independent poker networks.
Playtech's bingo product also allows operators the option of the three different business models; either integrating sites into Playtech's Bingoland.com network or opting for the independent licensee option or the licensed network model. Both North American-style 75-ball bingo and 90-ball UK-style games are available.
Recently, Playtech released a customized software package aimed at sportsbook operators that includes twelve new fixed-odds games, instant-access flash games and integrated live scores and odds data tickers.
Operators also have the option of connecting to Playtech's progressive network, WinAJackpot.com, which is available across the company's product range and features hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money and games with 3D interactive animated bonus stages.
The company currently boasts 37 global licensees.