Mazaii, a Canadian provider of iGaming games and solutions, will be acquired by blank-check firm Relativity Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: RACY) in a deal valuing the target at an initial enterprise value of $500 million.
The deal signals there’s still a strong appetite for iGaming assets and technology despite the fact that no new states have approved that form of wagering this year. Six states allow it. Relativity Acquisition is a Las Vegas-based special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that was originally formed with the intention of affecting a deal in the cannabis space, but the blank-check firm told investors it would be flexible about exactly where it would find an acquisition partner. The combination with Mazaii could prove prescient.
The company supplies its advanced gaming content and technology to prominent brands within the sector, enhancing their platforms and player experiences. Through strategic acquisitions, Mazaii Corp expands its market reach and strengthens its product offerings across key regions, including Europe, North America, Latin America, and Asia,” according to a statement.
The transaction is expected to be completed in the second half of this year.
Mazaii Could Find Enthusiastic Investor Audience
Mazaii could be at the right place at the right time in terms of broadening its investor base and accessing public markets because there’s been no shortage of coverage pertaining to the long-term internet casino opportunity set.
However, there is a dearth of available, publicly traded iGaming tech companies. That could work in Mazzaii’s favor as investors position for a potentially fruitful year on the online casino front in 2025.
Buttoning down superior technology is essential to operators’ efforts to fully capitalize on the internet casino opportunity set. Analysts and operators are enthusiastic about the outlook for internet casinos because there’s a long runway for state-level legalization. It’s also a higher margin business than sports betting, and bettors are often stickier and spend more money than they do on sports wagering.
Montreal-based Mazzaii and Relativity Acquisition expect to provide more details on the combination in the months ahead.
SPAC Resurgence? Maybe. Maybe Not.
Several years ago, the gaming industry was fertile territory for SPAC deals, but that well dried up as the broader market soured on companies that came public via mergers with blank-check firms. Most of the stocks, gaming and otherwise, performed poorly upon becoming standalone publicly traded firms.
There are some examples of gaming firms that came public by way of SPAC mergers that have delivered for investors, and there are plenty of others that have seen their share prices decline dramatically.
Following a slew of gaming SPAC transactions in 2021, many of the blank-check firms that were looking for merger partners in the industry threw in the towel as interest rates surged and stocks fell into a bear market in 2022. SPACs generally have two years to execute business combinations, including mergers, and if that doesn’t happen, the firms can seek extensions or liquidate and return capital to investors.
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