The Chinese-owned gambling giant Allied Esports Entertainment has agreed to sell its World Poker Tour assets to Element Partners.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere.- The Chinese-owned gambling giant Allied Esports Entertainment has\u00a0sold its World Poker Tour\u00a0<\/strong>brand assets to the private investment vehicle Element Partners for\u00a0US$78.25m.<\/strong><\/p>\n The agreement has already been approved by Allied Esports\u2019 board of directors but has yet to be approved by the company\u2019s shareholders. It ill also require regulatory approval.<\/p>\n Element will make an\u00a0upfront payment of $68.25m<\/strong>. It will also pay a fully guaranteed revenue share of 5 per cent of WPT-branded tournament entry fees on Element-owned or licensed gaming platforms, up to a maximum of US$10m, payable over three years from the closure of the deal.<\/p>\n The company said in a press release that the transaction is expected to\u00a0close in late January\u00a0<\/strong>or early February 2021.<\/p>\n Both companies have also discussed the possible\u00a0sale of Allied Esports<\/strong>, the giant\u2019s esports business, given the \u201crapid growth and popularity of gaming and esports during the COVID-19 pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n Upon completion of the WPT transaction, should the sale of the esports business also be completed, Allied Esports Entertainment would proceed under a new name as a publicly traded holding company focused on online entertainment.<\/p>\n Frank Ng,\u00a0<\/strong>CEO of Allied Esports Entertainment, said: \u201cDue to Covid-19\u2019s impact on the company\u2019s overall revenue generation and profitability timeline, we believe the forthcoming sale of the WPT business will garner significant capital and an avenue to determine new opportunities that will deliver accelerated returns for our stakeholders.\u201d<\/p>\n The\u00a0World Poker Tour<\/strong>\u00a0brand and business has grown considerably since its\u00a02002 inception.<\/strong><\/p>\n The brand has\u00a0live poker events<\/strong>\u00a0in all five continents, as well as a popular\u00a0television show<\/strong>\u00a0with a 150 million-strong audience.<\/p>\n WPT initially went public in 2003 and was later purchased by PartyGaming for $12m, plus a related revenue share.<\/p>\n In 2015, the company was\u00a0purchased for $35m\u00a0<\/strong>by the\u00a0Chinese firm Ourgame International Holdings Limited<\/strong>\u00a0and then acquired by NASDAQ-listed Black Ridge Acquisition Corp for $50m in 2019.<\/p>\n In a press release the company said 2020 was an exceptional year for WPT: \u201cWith in-person events postponed or cancelled due to COVID-19, WPT\u2019s flagship online subscription platform, ClubWPT, increased new registrations by 61 per cent, exceeding registrations during the full year of 2019.\u201d<\/p>\n 2020 also saw the\u00a0World Poker Tour<\/strong>\u00a0launch its\u00a0first event in India<\/strong><\/em>, through a partnership with India\u2019s leading online poker platform, Adda52.<\/p>\n The popular poker tournament also\u00a0returned to Cambodia.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n The shift online also led to WPT\u2019s largest event in its 18-year history with 2,130 entries for the WPT Online Championship.<\/p>\n