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PartyGaming’s merge with the Austrian online betting company would form a company with pro forma gaming sales of 682 million Euros last year. In a statement released today by PartyGaming chief executive officer, Jim Ryan and co chief executive of Bwin, Norbert Teufelberger, interested parties were told that total earnings for the same period before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were 196 million Euros. 

Ryan and Teufelberger will become co-chief executive officers of the new merged company. Current Bwin co chief executive, Manfred Bodner, will become a non-executive director on the board of the enlarged group.

In a conference call with reporters, Ryan asserted: “With market-leading positions in poker, sports betting, casino and games (in particular bingo), the enlarged group will have a winning formula to exploit the growing online gaming market”. Teufelberger admitted: “This merger of equals makes great strategic, operational and financial sense”. 

Bwin is currently the largest e-gaming company in the world, trading on the Vienna stock exchange and valued at around 1.4 billion Euros. PartyGaming is the second largest e-gaming company, trading at present on the London stock exchange and valued at around 1.1 billion pounds.

The merged company would be listed in London, with Bwin the majority shareholder. The split would be formed so that shareholders of PartyGaming PLC owning 48.36 percent of the whole company and shareholders of Bwin owning 51.64 percent.

Since news of the merge was released, PartyGaming shares rose by a huge 30 percent, the highest rise on record, to 333 pence and traded at 321.5 pence as of 11.48am. The operator of the PartyPoker and PartyCasino online gambling sites has clearly been strengthened enormously by the move.

In a similar fashion, Bwin shares rose by 12 percent to 39.91 Euros and were suspended at 12.15pm in Vienna.

With PartyGaming already a massive presence in the online casino and poker world, it will now be able to expand its presence in the betting community. Bwin has the biggest online sportsbook operation in the world and will, in turn, be keen to increase its poker presence. The merger will create new opportunities for both companies – and provide players with a giant new playground of gaming action.