Dual Stock Listing for PokerStars/Amaya; Company’s Priorities Debated

If this weekend’s announcement proves correct than PokerStars and Amaya Gaming may remain even more independent than a lot of people thought, as Amaya Gaming CEO David Baazov is now floating the idea of a secondary stock listing for the two companies in either New York or London.

“There will be a dual listing,” Baazov told the Sunday Times in an interview this weekend.

Amaya Gaming purchased PokerStars and 100% of the company’s assets in a blockbuster $4.9 billion deal last month that has had a ripple effect throughout the industry, as market analysts from the US to Canada to Russia try to calculate the potential impact of the deal.

Of course the deal still needs to be approved by Amaya shareholders (a mere formality) and then there is the matter of completing the $4.9 billion acquisition, which is also seen as a formality, although a bit more formidable one based on the size and scope of the deal.

The deal is also expected to pave the way for PokerStars return to the US market, as the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement is already in talks with Amaya Gaming regarding PokerStars license –PokerStars is partnered with Resorts Casino in New Jersey and could launch by the end of 2014.

Amaya’s Top 5 Growth Initiatives

While Baazov contemplates a potential dual listing for the company another topic is being debated by industry analysts and insiders on Twitter, where some of the top minds in the industry are trying to rank the Top 5 growth initiatives for AmayaStars. Can I trademark that name?

So far there seems to be a solid consensus as to the initiatives, which were laid out by Amaya CEO David Baazov in an investors conference call back in June, where he stated, “Of course, the U.S. is one of Rational’s growth initiatives. We also intend to support the company’s growth in real money, online casino, sports betting, and social gaming.”

It’s the priority of each of these that is currently being debated:

David Baazov re:Pokerstars aquisition : "Out of our top five growth initiatives, the US is number four"

— Alexandre Dreyfus (@alex_dreyfus) July 7, 2014

Alexandre Dreyfus produced the following ranking:

1. Casino
2. Expanding poker category
3. sports betting
4. US

@PokerHack, the Head of content at Pageant Gaming Media had a slightly different list:

1. Casino
2. Social
3. Sports
4. US

Others like Adam Krejcik of Managing Director – Digital & Interactive Gaming – Eilers Research thought social should be #1, while Chris Grove of onlinepokerreport.com puts social at #1 or #2.