Japanese company MIXI’s interest in takeover target PointsBet has grown to the brink of 15 per cent, as it looks to outpoint fellow shareholder betr in securing the corporate bookmaker.
MIXI’s $400 million off-market takeover bid is now live, and the Japanese company, which has a host of businesses, including social betting platform TIPSTAR as well as the BetM brand in Australia, is building up its foothold in what has become an extremely competitive and complicated battle to secure PointsBet.
It issued a statement on Monday morning to the ASX saying it now had 14.98 per cent of PointsBet shares on issue, up from the 11.7 per cent it announced on Friday.
Betr, which currently holds 19.6 per cent of shares in PointsBet, is putting forward its own off-market offer, despite the PointsBet board repeatedly rejecting its approaches and recommending shareholders accept the all-cash deal on the table from MIXI.
MIXI would gain control of the company and effectively win the battle for PointsBet if it could get its shareholding to 50.1 per cent, but The Straight understands that betr remains determined to stay in the fight and prevent that from happening.
It is expected that the battle to secure PointsBet, which holds around 5 per cent of the Australian market, will continue for some months.
A shareholder scheme vote in June was set to hand MIXI the initial deal it was seeking, when it was initially announced it had secured the 75 per cent support required. But betr demanded a recount, which then saw MIXI fall short of that mark, with a computer systems error blamed for the incorrect result being announced.
MIXI’s current presence in Australia is small, through BetM, which was set up in 2022 and licensed in the Northern Territory. However, it has ambitions in Australia, aiming to combine its social-led product in Japan with PointsBet's well-developed sports and racing offerings. It also intends to retain PointsBet’s Canadian business.
Bren O’Brien
Betr, which has secured mergers and acquisitions with rivals BlueBet and TopSport in the past 14 months, is looking to build its hold in the Australian market to beyond 10 per cent. PointsBet is currently the best option to reach that point.
While there is substantial customer crossover – PointsBet revealed last week that 65 per cent of turnover comes from punters of both brands – betr sees significant synergies in combining the two businesses.
Meanwhile, betr chairman Matthew Tripp has sold down his interests in betting tech company BetMakers, offloading 35 million shares in a deal worth $4.2 million. Tripp is no longer a substantial shareholder in the company.
