Catena Media has placed an increasing focus on its American business after agreeing a deal to sell its AskGamblers website and associated brands for €45m ($47.8m) to Gambling Innovation Group (GiG).
The deal has also seen GiG acquire JohnSlots.com and NewCasinos.com, while Catena seeks to shrink its European operations.
Expected to close in early 2023, the deal consists of payments broken down by €20m ($21.2m) to be paid on closing, €10m ($10.6m) 12 months from closing and the remaining €15m ($15.9m) 24 months from closing.
The news comes following Catena’s strategic review announced during H1 of 2022, in which it placed its European operations under the spotlight with weakening performance.
Highlighting the need for divestiture, Catena revealed that in the first nine months of 2022 the operations reported a double-digit decline in revenue to $12.9m.
Meanwhile, in its Q3 trading report, North American turnover reached $19.2m, up 11% YoY and contributing to 58% of the group revenue.
Following the strategic review, Catena has placed an increasing focus on North American growth, with the continuing aim of ‘streamlining the business in line with this focus’.
It has been revealed that the firm is in discussions to offload its Financial Trading Assets and other European assets.
Catena Media CEO Michael Daly said: “Today’s agreement is a major step on our journey to focus the business on online sports betting and casino affiliation in high-growth, regulated markets in the Americas.
“I am confident that in Gaming Innovation Group we have found a buyer that will provide a strong environment for AskGamblers and the other brands and their talented people to develop and grow.”
GiG will incorporate AskGamblers and associated brands into its GiG Media division and will help to ‘create sustainable long-term growth and provide the business with several key strategic assets and multiple revenue opportunities.
Richard Brown, CEO of Gaming Innovation Group, said: “We are extremely excited to take over the AskGamblers brand. Combining it with our media technology and operational capabilities provides a great opportunity to expand our global reach and to deliver a path for AskGamblers to continue with its strong evolution.
“We look forward to integrating the staff and website assets into GiG.”
Following the sale’s closure, Catena will continue to place focus on its US assets and growth in that market. However, in the Q3 earnings call last month, CEO Daly revealed that Latin American growth is well within the company’s sights.
Addressing Catena Media investors, Daly noted: “Once the strategic review is behind us, I look forward to the organization redoubling its focus on the highly promising Latin American market.
“I fully expect that we will soon begin to see this dynamic region take on a significant role in our Americas’ story.”
