Shepherd and Wedderburn acts for FanDuel in sale to Paddy Power Betfair

Shepherd and Wedderburn has acted as lead UK adviser to FanDuel on its sale to the global online sports betting and gaming group, Paddy Power Betfair.

Corporate finance partner Stephen Trombala and associate John Morrison advised on the UK aspects of the transaction, supporting Todd Cleary and Ethan Lutske of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati - FanDuel’s lead advisers in the United States.

FanDuel, a US-focused fantasy sports betting platform, which was launched in Edinburgh in 2007, currently has more than 7 million registered customers across 40 US states and to date is one of only two Scottish technology companies to achieve ‘unicorn’ value - in excess of $1 billion – alongside Edinburgh-based Skyscanner. Shepherd and Wedderburn has advised FanDuel from launch. 

The sale to Paddy Power Betfair, agreed on 23 May 2018, will see the FTSE 100-listed group combine the US assets of its Betfair brand with FanDuel.

Paddy Power Betfair has agreed to pay $158 million in cash for the FanDuel assets, from which FanDuel will pay down $76 million of existing debt.  

On completion, Paddy Power Betfair will own 61% of the combined business and FanDuel shareholders the remaining 39%, though the agreement includes options which could see Paddy Power Betfair own the combined group outright after five years. 

Stephen Trombala said: “This is a tremendous deal, which is very exciting for the teams at FanDuel and Paddy Power Betfair. We are delighted to have been involved with FanDuel from its earliest days and look forward to the success of the combined business.”