Zeal publishes offer document to acquire Lotto24

The UK-based Zeal Network SE has sent its offer document for the complete acquisition of Germany’s largest private digital lottery broker, Lotto24 AG.

The German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has approved the offer document in accordance with the German Securities Acquisition and Takeover Act (Wertpapiererwerbs—und Übernahmegesetz). Lotto24 shareholders can accept the offer by tendering their shares to ZEAL. Lotto24 shareholders will get one new ZEAL share in exchange for 1.604 shares of Lotto24. The offer will be valid till 10 April 2019 at 24:00 hours (CET).

ZEAL has already secured approximately 65 per cent of the shares and voting rights in Lotto24 through irrevocable tender commitments from major shareholders of the company, namely Günther Group, Working Capital and Jens Schumann.

Dr Helmut Becker, CEO, ZEAL: “We are fully on track to reunite ZEAL and Lotto24. The conversion of Tipp24 to the lottery brokerage model and our combination with Lotto24 will create a superior platform for sustainable and accelerated growth in Germany and beyond. Lotto24 has successfully grown its market share in the German online lottery market to 34 per cent in 2018. Together, we will build on this position, and our combined scale and technology capability to further expand our joint business. We are convinced that the transaction will create significant value for shareholders of both companies, customers, and the German federal states and their lottery beneficiaries. With our offer, we are inviting Lotto24 shareholders to join us on this exciting journey and become part of our combined success story.”

On completion, the transaction will create a digital lottery group with currently more than 5 million combined customers globally, current combined billings of about EUR 500 million, and a diverse international footprint. In the context of the deal, and consistent with its renewed strategy to de-risk its business model and focus on locally licensed businesses, ZEAL intends to transform its German secondary lottery business into a locally licensed online brokerage model after reacquiring control of its myLotto24 and Tipp24 subsidiaries.