Rank Group Adds to its Mecca Bingo Portfolio with Stride Purchase

Home » Rank Group Adds to its Mecca Bingo Portfolio with Stride Purchase

The parent company of Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casinos, Rank Group PLC (LON: RNK), has boosted its portfolio after finalising its purchase of online casino and bingo operator Stride Gaming.

In a statement given Friday, gambling giant Rank Group PLC (LON: RNK), confirmed that it had completed the acquisition of London-listed peer Stride Gaming PLC, whose shares have now been temporarily suspended.

The completion follows a lengthy purchase which began in May when Rank Group PLC (LON:RNK) made a 151 pence per share offer, which valued Stride at £115.3 million.

John O'Reilly, Rank Group's chief executive said of the purchase:

“Today marks a significant day for Rank. This acquisition delivers a proprietary technology platform and highly experienced team which will accelerate the transformation of Rank and create one of the UK's leading online gaming businesses.

“Our focus now turns to ensuring we successfully integrate Stride into Rank and realise the potential of our new enlarged digital business.”

The completion of the purchase follows a court-sanctioned deal made earlier last week. Stride shareholders voted to agree to the deal in July, whilst the UK Gambling Commission also gave its approval to the acquisition in September.

Rank Group to Utilise Stride Platform and Ecosystem

Rank Group PLC said that the merger would create a business with pro forma digital net gaming revenues of around £185m. It also said that the purchase would aid Rank Group to improve its performance and cut costs via the migration to Stride’s in-house proprietary technology platform and ecosystem.

The Rank Group PLC (LON: RNK) shares hit a 12-month high of 196.00 on Friday following the announcement, before pulling back and closing 190.80, down 4.2% on the day.

The news follows FTSE 100-listed bookmaker Flutter Entertainment PLC announcement that it had agreed to an all-share purchase of The Stars Group Inc, a Canadian online gambling company which owns online betting powerhouse Sky Betting & Gaming.

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