The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has approved the idea of licensed gambling operator PointsBet being taken over by Japanese entertainment and technology firm Mixi.
In a statement dated July 7, PointsBet confirmed that after an intensive and extended review into the suitability of Mixi as a buyer, the Australian sportsbook has received written confirmation that AGCO has “no concerns” with the proposed acquisition.
To operate in Ontario’s regulated online gambling market, as PointsBet does, gaming companies must apply to and be granted a licence by the AGCO as well as sign an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario (iGO), the now-standalone agency that conducts and manages the province’s market.
PointsBet confirmed that iGO has also given written confirmation that it is fine with the Mixi takeover.
The operator, which offers online sports betting in Ontario and Australia and also provides an online casino product in the Canadian province, confirmed that Mixi’s proposed takeover has now satisfied all gaming regulatory approvals after it got the go-ahead in Australia back in March. However, the deal, which has been recommended by the PointsBet board, is still subject to other closing conditions, as well as the approval of a minimum of 50.1% of PointsBet shareholders.
Vote error sets back process, rival Betr bid still in play
Late in June, what should have been a simple PointsBet shareholder vote on the Mixi offer went off the rails when a technological error impaired the process.
Registry provider Computershare mistakenly excluded the vote from Betr, another Australian sportsbook. Betr is PointsBet’s largest shareholder, with a 19.9% stake, and is looking to outbid Mixi to acquire the company. Betr leaders had vowed to vote the company’s entire shareholding against the Mixi bid and projected in the lead-up to the vote that Mixi’s takeover would fail.
At first, PointsBet suggested that Betr had not filed its proxy vote, but the tech error was later confirmed. Once Betr’s vote was accounted for, Mixi’s takeover did not get the required voting majority. Betr said in a statement that PointsBet was “unprofessional and irresponsible” in its reaction to the excluded vote and questioned the company’s conduct.
Upon the failure of its takeover, Mixi and PointsBet have agreed on an off-market takeover offer at the same AUD $1.20-per-share price (CAD $1.06) equating to a total price of AUD $402 million (CAD $356 million). However, Betr vowed to return with its own offer and is expected to officially file its latest bid in the coming days.
PointsBet has repeatedly stated that it believes Mixi’s all-cash offer represents better valuation for shareholders than Betr’s mixed-funding bid.
From a Canadian perspective, a major difference between the rival offers is that Betr has a non-binding agreement in place to sell PointsBet’s Canadian assets to Hard Rock Digital, while it seems Mixi would keep hold of all of the Canada business.
PointsBet leaders including CEO Sam Swanell and Canadian branch CEO Scott Vanderwel have reiterated several times that the company intends to enter the Alberta regulated market when that province opens its door next year, extending PointsBet Canada into a second potentially lucrative province.
