presence could create competition concerns. The new group would have had revenue of 3.8 billion pounds last year, making it the worldвЂ™s biggest online betting and gaming company, and the deal will achieve pretax synergies of about 140 million pounds a year, according to the statement. вЂњWe have been an engaged shareholder in Stars Group for some time and are delighted to see innovative, emerging companies becoming the growth companies of tomorrow.вЂќ вЂњWe are very excited about this transaction,вЂќ said Alex Baum, vice president at ValueAct.

The stock traded at US$19.02 after the Flutter deal was announced. The activist fund built a 4.7 per centВ stake in Stars Group in the second quarter, when the average share price was US$17.76. The deal has handed Jeff UbbenвЂ™s ValueAct Capital Management a significant windfall. Given the size of the American economy and its lucrative sports leagues, вЂњyou could see a market north of US$20 billion of annual revenue, which would be far and away the biggest legal betting market in the world,вЂќ said Greg Johnson, analyst at Shore Capital. European peers such as William Hill Plc also rose on the news. Flutter shares pared an early gain to trade up 8.1 per cent at 8,250 pence as of 2:48 p.m. firms.ДЇlutterвЂ™s offer assigns an equity value to Stars Group of about 4.95 billion pounds (US$6 billion), which represents a premium of about 40% to TuesdayвЂ™s closing share price, according to Bloomberg calculations. However, the only way for foreign companies to enter the market is through partnerships with U.S. In May last year, AmericaвЂ™s highest courtВ struck downВ a federal law that had barred single-game gambling in most of the country. It improves FlutterвЂ™s position in key growth markets, including the U.S., while also bolstering scaleвЂќ and position in its core markets. вЂњWe see strong strategic merit to the transaction. Its shares rose as much as 22 per centВ on Wednesday, while StarsвЂ™s soared 24В per centВ at the open in New York.ДЇor the buyer this is вЂњa truly transformational deal for both the company and the industry,вЂќ Davy analysts Michael Mitchell and Jack OвЂ™Halloran said in a research note. presence - it owns the FanDuel fantasy sports site - it derives almost half its revenue from Britain, where tighter rules on fixed-odds betting terminals and higher taxes for online betting have upended the industry. The Toronto-based target owns the American PokerStars brand, has partnerships with casinos including Reno, NevadaвЂ™s Eldorado Resorts Inc., and recently signed a deal with Fox Sports. after the Supreme Court legalized sports betting.ДЇlutter, headquartered in Dublin, said in a statement it has offered 0.2253 of its shares in exchange for each Stars share. in a US$6 billion all-share deal to create the worldвЂ™s biggest online gaming group and take advantage of opportunities in the U.S.

Prior to investing into a fund, please read the relevant key information document which contains important information about the fund.Flutter Entertainment Plc is buying The Stars Group Inc. Before opening an account, please read the вЂDoing Business with FidelityвЂ™ document which incorporates our client terms. You should regularly review your investment objectives and choices and, if you are unsure whether an investment is suitable for you, you should contact an authorised financial adviser. This website does not contain any personal recommendations for a particular course of action, service or product. When investments have particular tax features, these will depend on your personal circumstances and tax rules may change in the future. Please remember that past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance, the performance of investments is not guaranteed, and the value of your investments can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest.

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