Playtech Acquires Markets.com (TradeFX) for up to €458 Million
- Playtech is acquiring TradeFX, the holding company behind the forex and CFD broker Markets.com, in a deal valued up to €458 million.
Playtech, the gaming software giant run by Tedi Sagi, is officially entering the Forex Forex Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. Read this Term market through its acquisition of TradeFX Limited in a deal worth up to €458 million for a controlling 91.1% stake. TradeFX is the ownership entity behind the Markets.com brand and its underlying technology. Initially launched as GFC Markets and later rebranded to Markets.com, the group was backed by Tedi Sagi and was his main venture into the forex industry. Telesphere, a subsidiary of Sagi’s benefit trust, currently holds 86.45% of TradeFX.
Playtech believes the deal will become immediately accretive to their earnings
Terms of the deal are an initial cash payment of €208 million with up to an additional €250 million paid by December 2017, based on the future EBITDA considerations. At €208 million, Playtech is paying 8.1 times EBITDA for Markets.com. Playtech believes the deal will become immediately accretive to their earnings. Shareholder voting to approve the deal will take place later this month with a potential date of May 31st to complete the acquisition. Following the completion of the acquisition, current TradeFX management are expected to continue operating the company.
The deal came as TradeFX reported $27.6 million in Q1 revenues, marking 87% year-over- year growth, with $12.3 million in EBITDA. During the quarter they had 23,900 active customers and 10,800 in first time deposits.
Since launching as a forex and CFD broker in 2009, TradeFX has grown to include various trading brands, headed by Markets.com and TopOption, as well as operating forex and binary trading technology and a proprietary CRM system. Their latest release was the launch of a proprietary webtrader at the end of 2014.
Prior to today’s announcement, Markets.com has been considered to be an IPO candidate, similar to other Sagi backed assets such as Safecharge. The acquisition though, follows a separate model which Sagi has used which has been to back separate entities and eventually sell them to larger companies that he has an interest in, such as PT Turnkey Services in 2008, where Sagi earned €140 million at the time of the deal.
Playtech, the gaming software giant run by Tedi Sagi, is officially entering the Forex Forex Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. Read this Term market through its acquisition of TradeFX Limited in a deal worth up to €458 million for a controlling 91.1% stake. TradeFX is the ownership entity behind the Markets.com brand and its underlying technology. Initially launched as GFC Markets and later rebranded to Markets.com, the group was backed by Tedi Sagi and was his main venture into the forex industry. Telesphere, a subsidiary of Sagi’s benefit trust, currently holds 86.45% of TradeFX.
Playtech believes the deal will become immediately accretive to their earnings
Terms of the deal are an initial cash payment of €208 million with up to an additional €250 million paid by December 2017, based on the future EBITDA considerations. At €208 million, Playtech is paying 8.1 times EBITDA for Markets.com. Playtech believes the deal will become immediately accretive to their earnings. Shareholder voting to approve the deal will take place later this month with a potential date of May 31st to complete the acquisition. Following the completion of the acquisition, current TradeFX management are expected to continue operating the company.
The deal came as TradeFX reported $27.6 million in Q1 revenues, marking 87% year-over- year growth, with $12.3 million in EBITDA. During the quarter they had 23,900 active customers and 10,800 in first time deposits.
Since launching as a forex and CFD broker in 2009, TradeFX has grown to include various trading brands, headed by Markets.com and TopOption, as well as operating forex and binary trading technology and a proprietary CRM system. Their latest release was the launch of a proprietary webtrader at the end of 2014.
Prior to today’s announcement, Markets.com has been considered to be an IPO candidate, similar to other Sagi backed assets such as Safecharge. The acquisition though, follows a separate model which Sagi has used which has been to back separate entities and eventually sell them to larger companies that he has an interest in, such as PT Turnkey Services in 2008, where Sagi earned €140 million at the time of the deal.