Czech billionaire’s Allwyn to merge with OPAP, creating $18.6 billion lottery group

European lottery radical Allwyn International and Greek gaming steadfast OPAP will merge successful an all-share woody valuing the caller institution astatine €16 billion, they person said, creating 1 of the world’s biggest lottery operators. 

Privately owned Allwyn has been expanding rapidly successful caller years, taking implicit lottery operators successful the United States and Britain’s National Lottery. The tie-up with OPAP is simply a step toward a listing successful a large halfway similar London oregon New York, the companies said.

Allwyn said the completion of the transaction with OPAP, successful which it already owns 51.78%, was expected successful the archetypal fractional of 2026, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.

Allwyn will clasp 78.5% successful the combined company, while OPAP shareholders, excluding Allwyn, will clasp the remaining 21.5%, assuming an all-share combination, the companies said.

KKCG, the concern radical of Czech billionaire Karel Komarek and main proprietor of Allwyn, will person 85% of voting rights.

The combined radical will beryllium named Allwyn and stay listed connected the Athens Stock Exchange. It will question a listing connected an planetary speech such arsenic London oregon New York pursuing the transaction’s closing, the companies said.

In 2024, Allwyn reported adjusted net earlier interest, tax, depreciation and amortization of €1.5 billion, connected gross of €8.8 billion, a 12% year-on-year rise.

Last period arsenic portion of its strategy to determination into different segments, Allwyn said it would get a bulk stake successful US phantasy sports relation PrizePicks successful a woody valuing the Atlanta-based institution astatine $1.6 billion.

KKCG sold a 4.3% stake successful Allwyn to Czech-Slovak radical J&T Arch Fund successful August, valuing the lottery radical astatine €11.2 billion. [Reuters]