Shareholders Reportedly Approve Lottomatica’s IPO

Following the announcement that Lottomatica is expected to go public in April, Reuters reported that shareholders have approved the move. The plan is to list the Italian operator on the Borsa Italiana’s Euronext Milan exchange.

While it is still unclear whether Lottomatica’s initial public offering will be able to meet the projected date, it is evident that the IPO plans are more than just a rumor. According to the people familiar with the matter, Lottomatica is planning to offer both new and existing shares.

Lottomatica is owned by the American global private-equity firm Apollo Global Management. The now-approved IPO will provide the operator with the extra resources it needs to consolidate its presence and increase its market share.

The first wind of Lottomatica’s intentions to go public was caught in mid-January when anonymous sources spoke about the potential IPO. They said that the company’s IPO might raise as much as a billion dollars

The reports claimed that Lottomatica is carefully examining the market conditions and is working with entities such as UniCredit SpA to make sure its IPO would achieve the desired results.

One of the Reuters sources told the news outlet that the money will be invested into new strategic acquisitions that will further bolster the gambling company. Through M&A activity, Lottomatica will be able to quickly scale its business.

2022 Was a Strong Year for the Company

Speaking of acquisitions, last year, Lottomatica acquired the Italian remote gaming and betting collection company Betflag. The deal had a slight effect on the company’s financial metrics, with Lottomatica reporting an EBITDA of $548.61 million for the period.

Yesterday, the Italian gambling giant published its pro-forma financial results, confirming some previously projected figures. As it turns out, Lottomatica’s wagering handle was around $24.2 billion, resulting in revenue of $1.5 billion.

Q4 and 2022 as a whole was favorable period for the company, which continued to experience drastic growth. Q4 saw the company earn $411 million, translating into 7% growth.

2022 was a very busy year for Lottomatica in terms of partnerships, seeing the company ink many agreements with various B2B brands. In September, for example, the company teamed up with Amusnet, which provided its platform with a suite of engaging gaming titles. A month later, Lottomatica also entered into a partnership with Play’n Go, further expanding its offering.

In October last year, the Italian gambling company signed an exclusive payment deal with Nuvei, which was followed by an iPoker deal with Playtech.