PointsBet Acquires Banach Technology for $40+ Million

PointsBet had a major announcement this week as it has acquired an innovative betting platform in Banach Technology. The deal is reportedly in the $40 million range and is a complete takeover. This is the first major acquisition by PointsBet this year. A majority of the deal will be completed with cash upfront.

Banach Technology provides backend services and technology that works with providing betting algorithms, code, and platforms for sportsbooks. This will help PointsBet better its betting platform and help it continue to supply solid real-time bets with its in-game betting section.

Why Buy Banach Technology?

According to an interview with CNBC, PointsBet’s CEO Johnny Aitken simply said that “multiple benefits will be unlocked by this transaction.” Specifically, Aitken pointed to in-play betting as a major part of this deal.

The algorithms that Banach Technology can provide would seemingly help in-play wagers work faster and be more profitable for PointsBet. In another portion of the interview, the CEO, Aitken, says that almost 50% of wagers on its platforms are placed in-game, and he expects that number to rise significantly over the coming years.

When put into that context, this deal seems like a no-brainer for an up-and-coming sports betting enterprise like PointsBet. It needs to make sure that its in-game wagering is on par with the other major companies and needs to be able to make as much money as possible from it. This deal for $40+ million will help achieve that.

Other Sportsbooks Look at Live-Betting

Another example of in-game wagering is micro-bets. These are prop bets about things that are going to happen next in a sports game. This could range from the next receiver to record a catch to the next player to hit a home run. Simplebet is a company that provides these micro-bets.

The company recently raised another $15 million and has already been doing trials with sports gambling giants like FanDuel and Intralot. It seems that a lot of the major online and mobile sportsbooks in the United States are looking at live-game betting to be the majority portion of their revenue. If that is the case, then we should continue to see these companies invest heavily in technology to make live-betting more profitable.

PointsBet’s Next Move

PointsBet has made some massive moves recently, like a huge partnership with the NHL. It gave the NHL roughly $550k worth of stock in the deal with the company. This deal was made possible since NBC owns a massive stake in PointsBet and already has a working partnership with the NHL.

PointsBet will be eyeing large states like Virginia to launch its product. However, states like New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, Georgia, Florida, and Texas all have legislation in line to legalize sports gambling. These states will make or break a company like PointsBet. This is a massive portion of the US population, and these states have millions upon millions of revenue untapped in them.

PointsBet will need to make sure it gets licensed and grabs a chunk of the market in these key-states when sports betting is legalized and mobile/online wagering launches.