Better Collective has made a move to acquire a sub-5% shareholding stake in rival publishing firm Catena Media.
The European-based affiliate firm notified the stock exchange that it had purchased under 5% of Catena, which is going through a transitional period.
Since the repeal of PASPA in 2018, the two companies have fiercely battled for supremacy within the affiliate marketing and publishing industry around sports betting and casino, which has caused Catena to rethink its operations across the pond.
The last 12 months have seen Catena shed its European businesses, most recently demonstrated by the offloading of its AskGamblers and other affiliated domains in a $45m deal to GiG Media.
Furthermore, Catena is in discussions with several groups ‘that have shown interest in acquiring certain assets, including all the remaining assets of the group’, and partnered with Carnegie Investment Bank to assist with any potential sell-offs at the start of the year.
All this is to say that Catena is aggressively aiming to be number one in North America, and this strategy is beginning to bear fruit.
In a trading update for Q4, Catena stated that it anticipates its North American market revenue to grow by 31% YoY to $23.4m, with the region accounting for 78% of the group’s total revenue from continuing operations for the quarter.
CEO Michael Daly commented on the firm’s Q4 trading: “We successfully delivered on our strategy of further expansion in North America while completing our strategic review with the sale of AskGamblers and related assets. These preliminary results reaffirm our strategy and provide a solid platform as we enter 2023.”
But the news of Better Collective’s stakeholding comes as a surprise to many observers, with the two rivals embattled for North American market leadership.
Updating the Stockholm Nasdaq, Better Collective stated: “Better Collective has announced to Catena Media that it has acquired a position of >5% in the company. Better Collective is satisfied with the position, and will not comment any further on the matter.”
