Entain completes takeover of Enlabs and Bet.pt
Entain has been going strong in its strategy to advance and expand into many regulated markets as it announces the completion of its acquisition of Enlabs and Bet.pt, both European operators.
The acquisition of these two operators means that Entain has increased the number of global regulated markets that it operates in by approximately a third since the beginning of last year, as well as proving its possible entry into additional jurisdictions.
Enlabs is an online gambling group secured by Entain through a SEK 3.7 billion acquisition. This takeover will give Entain the opportunity to debut in the Baltic region through Optibet, and using Bet.pt to reinforce its standing in the southwestern region in Europe since it already has a strong presence in Spain thanks to bwin.
Deputy chief executive and CFO at Entain, Rob Wood, said:
“Portugal and the Baltic region represent highly attractive, locally regulated and fast-growing gaming markets. Both these acquisitions further deliver on our growth strategy of expanding across fast-growing international markets.”
Looking ahead, the group is expecting to further increase the number of regulated markets in which it operates through a combination of positive regulatory developments in certain jurisdictions, such as Canada, and expansion into new countries in regions including Latin America and Central and Eastern Europe.
Wood also went on to say:
“These new acquisitions are in line with our strategy to expand into new locally regulated markets. We are committed to operating only in countries which are either already fully regulated or in the process of regulating and will continue to look for opportunities to expand our business internationally.”
Towards the end of 2020, Entain was dedicated to running operations in territories that were already regulated or were in the process of becoming regulated. Currently, 99% of the company’s revenue hails from entirely regulated countries, which the group has pledged to turn into 100% by 2024.