PointsBet Acquisition by Mixi Approved by Regulators
The Australian Government has given Australian online bookmaker PointsBet regulatory approval for its planned takeover by Japanese media and gaming firm Mixi. Initially proposed in late 2024 and officially announced in February 2025, the acquisition would involve Mixi taking 100% of PointsBet's shares.
The Australian Commonwealth Government has verified that the takeover is in accordance with the Foreign Acquisition and Takeovers Act 1975. However, regulatory bodies in Canada still need to approve the transaction. If that happens, it would result in a charge to the Ontario sports betting market.
PointsBet previously rejected any talks with overseas buyers in Q4 2024 before confirming the takeover possibility. The Australian Government approval comes after Mixi made a revised offer, raising its bid price from just over $223 million to $264 million in an attempt to enhance its chances of winning the deal.
Approval from the regulator is a significant move towards the takeover offer, while the final approval in Canada is awaited.
The license was granted just a week after PointsBet was fined just over $323,000 by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) for violating spam and self-exclusion rules. An investigation found the operator had sent over 800 promotional messages between August and November 2023 to customers who had opted out or self-excluded from promotional messages.
Bidding war continues
The Mixi approval comes amid a battle for control of PointsBet. Australian wagering firm Betr Entertainment recently launched a rival bid to take over the company, triggering the current challenge.
Betr already owns 19.9% of PointsBet stock and is bidding for the remaining 80.1% via a Scheme of Arrangement, which values the company at $231.1 million. The offer is above Mixi's latest bid and comprises a cash consideration of $168 million, along with an additional $64.7 million in Betr scrip.
To fund its offer, Betr raised $168 million of debt financing from the National Australia Bank. It also sold PointsBet's other Canadian assets to Seminole Hard Rock Digital on terms and initiated an underwritten equity raise of $84.1 million.
Betr has positioned its offer as a superior alternative to Mixi's bid, with superior funding certainty and strategic synergies. In Betr management's response, the new terms directly address concerns raised in PointsBet's Letter to Shareholders, released on April 3.
"We have fully addressed the concerns raised by PointsBet in its letter to shareholders on 3 April, including enhancing our funding certainty, synergy realisation, and due diligence timing. Our proposal is supported by materially enhanced funding security, and as the largest shareholder in PointsBet, we now intend to vote our holding against the MIXI proposal," said Betr’s Chairman Matthew Tripp.
The company is attempting to persuade shareholders that its offer offers better long-term value and is better aligned with PointsBet's current business and market position.
