TBILISI/Feb. 2 (The Conway Bulletin) — — London-listed betting company Paddy Power Betfair bought a controlling 51% stake in Tbilisi-based Adjarabet for $115m and said it would buy the remaining 49% of the company within three years.
For Georgia and the South Caucasus, Paddy Power Betfair’s takeover of Adjarabet is a vote of confidence in their economies and revenue growth in their online gambling markets. Adjarabet is the market leader for online betting in Georgia, with roughly a 40% share of the market. In 2017 it expanded into the Armenian market.
Peter Jackson, Paddy Power Betfair CEO, said that the purchase was in-line with the company’s acquisition policy.
“Adjarabet’s leading brand presence and strong management team has established it as the clear number one in the fast-growing, regulated online Georgian market. Together with our Group’s technology and sports capabilities, we are confident that Adjarabet will be strongly positioned to continue to build on this success.”
Adjarabet is the trading name of Atlas, a Georgia-registered company that had been wholly owned by Tbilisi-based investment company City Loft. In 2018 it had revenues of 215m lari ($81m).
Adjarabet runs the full range of online gambling services from sports betting to virtual casinos. It takes its name from one of Georgia’s first casinos in the southwest region of Adjara.
Analysts said the Georgian and Armenia online gambling sectors were growing and were a safe investment for Paddy Power.
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>This story was first published in issue 399 of The Conway Bulletin on Feb. 8 2019
Copyright The Conway Bulletin 2019
