Hot Charge

How to play Hot Charge

Merkur has agreed to pay an effective price of €6.19 per SFC share for the stake, representing a substantial premium over recent market valuations. 

The premium reflects both the control premium paid to the sellers and Merkur’s valuation for majority ownership.

As Merkur’s acquisition of Casigrangi would grant indirect control over SFC, French regulations require Merkur to launch a simplified mandatory tender offer for the remaining SFC shares it does not already hold. 

About Hot Charge

Veikkaus has submitted licence applications as a private entity, joining around 50 other companies that had applied to join the upcoming market by the end of June.

The company committed to a management reshuffle late last year as part of this transition, scrapping the role of deputy CEO after Velipekka Nummikoski was shuffled into a new role.

The operator has made a number of key operational and technology changes during this process, including switching its sportsbook backend from DraftKings to OpenBet. And hiring a number of industry stalwards to lead its competitive business.

What is Hot Charge?

While the US and markets in Europe may have broadened discussions to encompass issues such as LGBTQ+ inclusion, she notes that priorities differ across Africa, where legal, cultural and social realities can vary between countries.

Looking ahead, industry leaders believe the next phase of DEI will be less about standalone initiatives and more about embedding inclusion into everyday business decisions.

Yaxley hopes DEI will become “a fundamental part of how organisations operate”, with technology and people analytics helping businesses to make fairer, evidence-based decisions on talent.