Novomatic set to acquire outstanding Ainsworth shares

Following official approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB), supplier Novomatic AG Group has announced the acquisition of the rest of Ainsworth’s shares for a cash consideration of $1 per share.  

The deal has been unanimously approved by Ainsworth’s Independent Board Committee, with final approval now resting on a shareholder vote. However, with FIRB approval already having been obtained by Novomatic, the merger is not subject to any further regulatory approvals.  

Indeed, the supplier already owns a 52.9% stake in Ainsworth – which was acquired in 2016 (and approved in 2017) from Aristocrat Leisure founder Len Ainsworth.  

Commenting on the deal, Stefan Krenn, Executive Board Member at Novomatic AG Group, stated, “The acquisition of Ainsworth is consistent with our international growth strategy and the expansion of our presence across the Asia-Pacific and the US region.  

“As a long-term shareholder we are familiar with the business and believe that integrating Ainsworth into our operations is in the best interest of this strategy. We look forward to welcoming the highly qualified and experienced Ainsworth employees into the Novomatic family to become part of our international growth and success.” 

Good to know: Earlier this month, Novomatic became the second company to secure a UAE gaming vendor licence from the nation’s regulator  

Further, Novomatic has initiated a recent enhanced focus on the European market – with the announcement of a 10-year gaming vendor licence extension last week in the Dutch market from the KSA falling in the wake of a development in January which saw the supplier offload its Austrian Admiral Group operations to Tipico.  

For Ainsworth, this latest development follows the organization’s entry into the Ontario market in September 2024, shortly after the supplier revealed a 15% year-over-year drop in revenue for the first half of the year.  

Will Underwood

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