Betr Entertainment continues to court PointsBet, battling competing offers from MIXI Australia.
The Australian operator has tabled an improved, all-share takeover offer for PointsBet, and has said its latest proposal is “superior” to that of MIXI Australia, which failed to gain a shareholder majority during a vote recount in June.
In its latest offer, Betr has pledged 3.81 of its own shares in exchange for each PointsBet share. This on-market offer, it said, equates to AU$1.22 per PointsBet share, based on a Betr share price of $0.32.
On paper, these are the same figures set out in its previous proposal, which was rejected by PointsBet for being “materially” below the $1.20 cash per share proposed by MIXI. However, Betr set out other points of its offer that it believes makes it superior to MIXI’s.
Betr said its offer provides PointsBet shareholders with the opportunity to participate in the “significant value creation” available to the combined business. This includes $44.9 million of expected annual cost synergies, estimated at up to $0.67 per PointsBet share if fully realised.
Cost synergies, coupled with the AU$1.22 per share offer, provides a potential deal value of $1.89 per PointsBet share. This, Betr said, would far exceed the proposal put forward by MIXI.
The offer is expected to open on 31 July and close on 8 September, subject to any additional extensions. There is no minimum acceptance condition but it is subject to approval from Betr shareholders. Betr added that it could further increase its offer and will issue an update if needed.
“This is just the start of the value creation journey we envisage for Betr and PointsBet shareholders for the combined business,” Betr said.
“PointsBet shareholders can benefit from additional, longer-term value upside and potential re-rating from the Betr management team’s unparalleled record of success, and the advantages of scale in a fast-consolidating market, as Australia’s only ASX-listed, pure-play digital wagering operator, with increased institutional investment appeal and pathway for ASX 300 index inclusion,” its updated offer said.
Neither PointsBet nor MIXI have officially commented on the new proposal.
The race to acquire PointsBet seemed to hit a wall when Betr’s last proposal was rejected. However, a controversial PointsBet shareholders vote recount last month left the door open for a fresh Betr offer.
PointsBet held a shareholder vote on the MIXI offer on 25 June, with 95.69% approving the offer. However, the proxy vote was more mixed, with just 69.47% backing the proposal.
This led to Betr accusing PointsBet of “impermissibly excluding” its vote against the scheme without reason. Betr, which holds a 19.9% voting power in PointsBet, said its proxy vote was not included in the final tally.
After an investigation identified a system error excluding Betr votes, a recount took place. The updated results showed 70.48% of all votes cast in the poll were in favour of the proposal, with 29.52% against. Therefore the scheme resolution was not carried forward, and the MIXI proposal was not approved.
In response to the recount, MIXI presented an amended proposal offering all-cash in contrast to Betr’s all-share. It implied an enterprise value of $402 million for PointsBet, the same valuation as MIXI’s previous offer.
The updated deal also offered a premium of 44.6% to the closing share price on 25 February 2025 of $0.83 per PointsBet share. This was the last closing price before the announcement of the scheme.
This latest offer requires a 50.1% minimum acceptance from PointsBet shareholders as well as certain regulatory approvals. In July, regulatory approval was achieved in Ontario, Canada where PointsBet also operates.
The PointsBet board agreed to unanimously recommend that shareholders approve the latest MIXI offer.
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