- Evolution’s board on Monday recommended shareholders reject Candle Lake’s mandatory cash offer of SEK 695 per share.
- The offer values the live-dealer blackjack giant at about SEK 131.7 billion, roughly $13.8 billion.
- The SEK 695 price sits 5.7 percent below Evolution’s Aug. 12 closing price of SEK 737.2.
- Kenneth Dart’s vehicle already holds 30.02 percent of Evolution, and the acceptance period closes about Sept. 15.
STOCKHOLM, Sweden – Evolution AB’s board of directors on Monday recommended shareholders reject the SEK 695-per-share takeover offer from Candle Lake Limited, billionaire Kenneth Dart’s investment vehicle, saying the roughly $13.8 billion bid “does not reflect the fair market value” of the world’s largest live casino supplier.
A Mandatory Bid, Not A Negotiated One
Candle Lake never asked to buy Evolution; Swedish takeover law forced the offer. Dart’s investment vehicle disclosed on July 24 that its stake had reached 30.02 percent of Evolution’s shares and votes, crossing the threshold that obligates a holder to offer to buy every remaining share. The SEK 695 price matches Evolution’s closing price on the day the threshold was crossed, according to the board’s statement.
That mechanical origin shapes the board’s answer. A bid set at a past closing price carries no takeover premium, and the board’s statement leans on exactly that gap: SEK 695 is just 1.6 percent above the 20-day volume-weighted average before the offer and 5.7 percent below the SEK 737.2 close on Aug. 12, the day before Candle Lake formally submitted it.
A shareholder who accepts would sell for less than the open market paid two weeks ago. That single number is the board’s whole case for rejection.
What It Means For Live Blackjack Players
Evolution supplies the live-dealer tables behind most regulated online casinos, including the live dealer online blackjack studios that deal for licensed US operators in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Michigan. Nothing changes at those tables on either outcome: Candle Lake’s offer document states no material changes are planned to Evolution’s operations, and a rejected bid leaves the company running exactly as it does today.
The open question is control. Dart keeps his 30.02 percent whatever shareholders decide, making him the dominant holder of the studio behind the largest share of legal online blackjack play in the US market, and a mandatory offer priced below market rarely attracts enough acceptances to change that arithmetic.
The Clock Ends In Mid-September
The acceptance period opened Aug. 17 and is expected to close on or around Sept. 15. Evolution’s board conducted the evaluation itself under the Swedish Takeover Rules, with Gernandt & Danielsson Advokatbyra as legal adviser. The next fixed date in the process is the close of the acceptance window, when Candle Lake must disclose how many shares were tendered.