Roundtable Discussion; The Future of Mineral Sands. Watch the video here.
While last week’s round was slightly bigger in financial terms, against the backdrop of the global financial and market turmoil endured through much of 2022, it is a far larger achievement.
It speaks not only to the growing confidence in the economic viability of Germany cannabis companies, but also to the slow-but-steady introduction of institutional capital into the European cannabis space.
One German medical cannabis operator told BusinessCann that in the days after the investment was announced, they had seen interest in partnerships and investment ‘increase tremendously’, receiving more requests for conversations ‘than hours in the day’.
They added that the BAT deal was an ‘important sign for the German market and for the whole industry’, and especially ‘important for us to see’ amid the widespread financial challenges facing European businesses.
Asked whether big-tobacco could become key to bringing in the institutional investment the European cannabis industry needs, Sanity Group’s Founder and Chief Executive Officer Finn Age Hänsel said: “I don’t think that the engagement of tobacco (Altria in Chronos, BAT in Organigram in us) or alcohol (e.g. Canopy Growth with Constellation brands) will single-handedly transform the industry.
“What it does show though is that more large stock-market listed corporations are taking the cannabis industry and the regulatory changes seriously and that is one step of hopefully many to come that will bring the industry forward.”
This deal has been ongoing for a year. I suspected it had broken down due to renegotiating the terms and price fall.
I’m wondering if Ed felt the same..
Leap brings all their licenses to the table. Openbet img arena and Leap all sharing the same address this changes everything now deal complete.
Puts Ed in a new very strong negotiating position.
This is what Ed has been waiting for…
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: EDR), a global sports and entertainment company (“Endeavor”), today closed its previously announced acquisition of OpenBet, a leading content, platform and service provider to the sports betting industry, from Light & Wonder, Inc. (Nasdaq: LNW) for approximately $800 million paid through a combination of cash ($750 million, subject to certain customary adjustments) and shares of Endeavor’s Class A common stock.
“The addition of OpenBet to our sports betting portfolio will enable us to further capitalize on the massive tailwinds in the fast-evolving sports betting ecosystem and lead the way in defining the future of sports betting entertainment,” said Ariel Emanuel, CEO, Endeavor. “In combination with our IMG ARENA sports data and content business, we’ll look to create and unlock meaningful value for our rights holder and sportsbook customers, helping deliver the most compelling offerings for sports fans globally.”
“We’ve been awaiting this day when we can bring together everything OpenBet has to offer with the depth of expertise and relationships that Endeavor and IMG bring to the table,” said Jordan Levin, CEO, OpenBet. “Our focus remains on providing our customers with the most innovative solutions to give their fans the ultimate sports betting complement to live sports. We couldn’t be more excited to lean into the Endeavor network to accelerate and amplify that mission.”
OpenBet and IMG ARENA will form a fourth operating segment for Endeavor, Sports Data & Technology, beginning January 2023.
OpenBet, with more than 1,000 team members situated across the globe, focuses exclusively on licensed customers and regulated global gaming markets serving a customer base that includes many top-tier sportsbooks such as DraftKings, FanDuel, SkyBet, Ladbrokes and William Hill. OpenBet specializes in betting engine technology, processing billions of bets annually, as well as trading, pricing and risk management tools; player account and wallet solutions; innovative front-end UX and UI; and content offerings such as BetBuilder, DonBest pricing feeds and an industry-first sports content aggregation platform.
IMG ARENA works with more than 470 leading sportsbook brands, leagues and federations worldwide to deliver official FastPath live streaming video and data feeds for more than 45,000 sports events annually. Additional expertise includes the creation and delivery of some of the world’s best, second-screen sports content, as well as virtual and mobile sports-specific betting products for fans.