Karel Komarek Revives IPO Plan for Sazka Group

Czech billionaire Karel Komarek is reviving plans for an initial public offering of Sazka Group, the European gambling company backed by Apollo Global Management Inc.

Komarek’s holding company KKCG Group AS is working with advisers on an IPO of Sazka that could take place as early as the second half of this year. The listing of Sazka on the London Stock Exchange is under discussion.

Prague-based Sazka runs lotteries in European countries including the Czech Republic, Greece, Austria, Italy and Cyprus. Customers placed 6.8 billion euros ($8 billion) of bets last year through the company’s national lotteries, instant scratch-card games, sports wagering and online betting businesses, according to its annual report.

Komarek has an estimated net worth of about $3 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Sazka reported 538.1 million euros of adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation last year.