FDJ enters discussions with ZEturf over potential acquisition
French national lottery operator has entered into exclusive negotiations to acquire the nation’s second biggest horseracing betting operator
Française des Jeux (FDJ) has entered into exclusive negotiations to acquire France’s second biggest horseracing operator ZEturf.
No financial details have been disclosed at this point, and FDJ has confirmed that any finalisation of the transaction will be subject to authorisation by the relevant authorities.
ZEturf was founded in 2001 and currently operates in the online horseracing betting market as well as online sports betting under the ZEbet brand.
The firm currently employs hundreds of staff and recorded nearly €800m (£700m) in bets in 2021.
ZEturf is currently France’s second biggest horseracing betting operator, with a market share of around 20%. The firm is also active in the Dutch, Belgian and Spanish markets.
This is the third potential acquisition that FDJ has completed this year. The first of those came back in July when it announced that it had acquired point-of-sale and payment provider Aleda.
In the same month, FDJ announced that it had acquired L’Addition, a French specialist in management collection and payment solutions for cafés, hotels and restaurants.
Both of these acquisitions are a part of the firm’s development strategy for its payment and services business, while it also tries to reinforce its to help merchants manage their points of sale.