Playtech share price tumbles as it seeks £250m placing to fund Plus500 deal
Shares in Playtech have tumbled after it revealed a share placing to help fund its £460m purchase of Plus500.
The online gambling firm is seeking to raise £250m through the placing, which may also be used to fund further acquisitions.
Shares tumbled as much as four per cent in early trading.
"Playtech's enviable M&A track record has been founded on its ability to be pro-active, facilitated by financial flexibility which has allowed it to be able to act from a position of strength," said Playtech chief Mor Weizer.
"Today's equity fundraising, in conjunction with new debt facilities, which we are in the process of securing, will improve the efficiency of Playtech's capital structure whilst maintaining the financial flexibility to pursue acquisitions in both the gambling and financial trading space to deliver long-term value for our shareholders."
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Playtech will list 29,050,000 ordinary shares – around 10 per cent of its current share capital – through an accelerated bookbuilding process. Canaccord Genuity and UBS are joint book runners on the placing while Shore Capital is the lead manager.
The firm's biggest shareholder, Brickington, will take up 33.6 per cent of the new shares to retain its overall stake at that level.