PlayUp Sportsbook to Sell US Business and Exit the Market

PlayUp announced that they will be exiting the US market after selling their business to an un-named publicly traded company. That means the PlayUp Sportsbook will soon be leaving Colorado and New Jersey. The small operator failed to gain a solid foothold in the US market, leading them to seek a deal. 

PlayUp had a $350 million deal done with IG Acquisitions Corporation, which would have made them a publicly traded company. Unfortunately, the agreement between IG and PlayUp fell apart in January. IG claimed they did not receive the proper financial documentation, while PlayUp contended that the corporation did not have the capital to complete the deal as promised. 

“Despite SPAC’s repeated requests for [PlayUp’s] Financial Statements, the Company has failed to deliver the Company Financial Statements and has provided no indication of when the Company Financial Statements will be delivered or if they will be delivered at all,” IG Acquisitions shared upon terminating the deal.

The new deal will involve a massive restructuring, leading to layoffs of all but seven US employees. The acquisition was supposed to be finalized in June but is now set to close by the end of July. 

FTX Deal Has Haunted PlayUp

Before FTX’s notorious collapse, they were close to completing a deal with the Australian-based operator. PlayUp received a $35 million investment from FTX, while the two companies discussed a potential $450 million acquisition. PlayUp blamed then-CEO Dr. Laila Mintas for the deal falling through, alleging that she bad-mouthed her employer to FTX. Things got ugly as they took Mintas to court before FTX eventually went under. The company's collapse was global news, putting a magnifying glass on the embarrassing failure.

Colorado Loses Another Sportsbook

PlayUp’s exit from the US market means Colorado will lose their fifth sportsbook in the last two years. Maverick Sportsbook and Sky Ute Sportsbooks have both announced their intentions to leave the Centennial State, following TwinSpires and Elite Sportsbook. Bally Bet has also paused operation in the state but is expected to revamp and return with a better platform.

Colorado has one of the lowers tax rates in the country at 10%, meaning they should have no trouble replacing the existing sportsbooks.