Allied Esports Entertainment, Inc, the Nasdaq-listed eSports and poker venture part-owned by Chinese online games operator Ourgame International Holdings, has revealed it will terminate a deal to sell its poker assets to growth equity firm Element Partners, LLC in order to accept a superior proposal from Bally’s Corp.
The decision to terminate comes after Element Partners had in January offered US$78.25 million to acquire all Allied’s poker-related business and assets, including the World Poker Tour. As reported by Inside Asian Gaming, Allied initially accepted that deal before US casino operator Bally’s Corp made an unsolicited US$100 million offer to acquire the same assets.
According to Allied, the Bally’s offer would comprise US$90 million in cash at closing and see Bally’s acquire “all of the equity interests of Club Services, Inc, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company that directly or indirectly owns the Company’s poker-related business and assets, including the entities comprising the World Poker Tour.”
Bally’s would also pay a US$3 million termination fee to Element Partners, plus another US$10 million should it fail to complete the new deal.
Allied announced Tuesday that its Board of Directors has now determined that the Bally’s proposal constitutes a “Superior Proposal” under the Stock Purchase Agreement between the company and Element Partners, and that Element Partners has already been notified of the company’s intention to terminate that agreement.
The World Poker Tour is recognized as one of the world’s leading poker brands with many of its WPT events broadcast globally.
