Warren Jacobs, the head honcho at ActiveWin, reckons the stars have aligned for Nektan to assume complete ownership of their shared venture, Nektan Marketing Services.
This enterprise was born when Jacobs and his right-hand man, Betfred founder Fred Done, were on the hunt for a new roost for their brainchild, Kerching.com. They found common ground with Nektan, then steered by COO Matt Sunderland, and a pact was sealed to shift the brand onto Nektan’s technological foundation.
During this transition, Sunderland floated the idea of broadening their collaboration beyond Kerching.com. He discovered that while Jacobs and Done weren’t shackled to Betfred, they weren’t knee-deep in marketing either. This sparked the genesis of a joint venture: Nektan Marketing Services.
This fresh-faced company would meld Nektan’s digital gaming prowess, particularly in the mobile realm, with the digital acquisition, customer relationship management, and client support acumen that Jacobs and Done brought to the table. At the outset, Nektan, Done, and Jacobs all held stakes in the venture. The blueprint envisioned Nektan furnishing the online platform and their own brands, while Done and Jacobs would utilize their seasoned experience to propel the business forward.
Nektar Market Solutions sought to purchase established brands such as Sapphire Lounge. They were also developing a client management system (CRM) division for both their own and white-label customers. Nektar, like many expanding businesses, wanted to consolidate operations internally. They sought control, as well as the enhanced supervision and expansion prospects that came with it, in order to attract further investment.
The transaction was valued at roughly £1.2 million, as they were also purchasing other holdings for £500,000, but they planned to continue utilizing ActiveWin’s services for the following year. Given our financial commitment and ongoing progress, it was essentially a request to capitalize on our collaborative achievements, which we found agreeable.
My approach wasn’t novel. Dragonfish was already present, as was Playtech’s turnkey solution, PTS. I had previously been employed by Europartners, which Playtech and PTS purchased for €280 million. As a result, I wasn’t doing anything revolutionary; rather, I was drawing on the successful Playtech approach of which I had been a part and replicating it on a smaller, more concentrated level.
Was the sale, from a commercial standpoint, completely harmonious?
Our collaboration extends beyond a positive professional connection – this alliance is robust, and we are mutually dedicated to fostering its expansion for a minimum of another year. The advancements achieved together bring us great satisfaction. Establishing and divesting this enterprise within a mere two years constitutes a significant triumph. It demonstrates our capability to execute such operations with speed and efficacy, solidifying our position as more than simply a vendor for entities akin to Betfred.”
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