A new ‘King of Online Gambling” was named by Forbes
An incredible coup helped Davis Baazov Amaya Gaming CEO in the acquisition of Rational Group.
Magazine Forbes in December named Amaya Gaming Group CEO David Baazov a new ‘king of online gambling’ after his master stroke in 2014 with purchasing of Rational Group, which is a privately held poker provider and the owner of PokerStars and Full Tilt.
In the article Forbes Staff Editor Nathan Vardi describes all the details of Baazov’s deeds and how he prepared for the purchase. The details of his negotiations with the investment fund Blackstone CEO who would invest CA$1 billion in the acquisition deal, its biggest ever investment commitment, are also given.
Amaya Gaming Group got the Rational Group for CA$4.9 billion in August and David Baazov, the founder of Amaya, governed all the investment actions by selling nearly CA$1.7 billion of Amaya Gaming stock at CA$18. CA$4.9 is an unbelievable cost paid for online industry.
The purchase of the Rational Group, the leader of online poker, for CA$4.9 billion was named one of the best bargains of 2014 by Forbes. Amaya Gaming had only CA$150 million profit and the share cost of CA$7 at the beginning of 2014 and the Rational Group profit was almost CA$1.1 billion. So the acquisition seemed an unavailing hope by David Baazov and his company.
Amaya Gaming Group CEO succeeded in raising enough costs for the acquisition due to his intelligence, fortune and utter determination. Baazov also could persuade PokerStars owners the Scheinberg Family to sell their profitable business to his little known company Amaya Gaming.
The deal with the Rational Group helped Amaya Gaming take a leading position in the industry with share cost of CA$28.50 (CA$38.78 in November) instead of CA$7. This also Helped Baazov to prove his leadership with his 12% stake in the company, which is now equal to CA$800m.
The igaming market is now waiting for the further development of Amaya Gaming’s sports betting and casino services, as the company is planning to widen its activity.
