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Tabcorp Agrees to Buy BetMakers for 24 Cents a Share

Ethan ClarkeBy , Regulation and Responsible Gambling Editor
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Tabcorp Holdings has agreed to acquire BetMakers Technology Group, the ASX-listed supplier of wagering technology, under a binding scheme implementation deed announced on 10 August 2026. Tabcorp will pay $0.24 cash for each BetMakers share, which values BetMakers’ equity at about $283 million on a fully diluted basis and implies an enterprise value of about $267 million.

The terms

  • **Price:** $0.24 cash per share. Gaming.net reported this as a 41.1% premium to BetMakers’ one-month volume-weighted average price.
  • **Scrip option:** BetMakers shareholders can elect to take up to 25% of their consideration in new Tabcorp shares, priced at no less than $1.00 each.
  • **Funding:** mainly Tabcorp’s existing cash and undrawn debt facilities.
  • **Board support:** the BetMakers board recommends the deal, and directors holding about 10% of its shares intend to vote in favour.
  • **Earnings:** BetMakers reported unaudited EBITDA of $14 million for the 12 months to 30 June 2026.

Tabcorp is targeting up to $30 million a year in cost savings by the end of the second year of ownership, mostly from combining data centres, corporate applications and technology contracts, and from replacing older platforms with BetMakers products. It expects the deal to add to earnings per share from the second year and to deliver double-digit accretion by the third.

Approvals and timing

The scheme needs approval from BetMakers shareholders and the court, clearance from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), and consents from gaming and racing regulators in the markets where BetMakers operates. A scheme booklet and independent expert’s report are due to go to BetMakers shareholders in late 2026. The companies are aiming to complete the deal in the third quarter of Tabcorp’s 2027 financial year, which runs from January to March 2027.

Second attempt

This is not the first approach. The two companies held informal talks after Tabcorp approached BetMakers in December 2025, and both confirmed in February 2026 that those discussions had ended. The binding agreement announced in August follows that earlier, unsuccessful round of talks.

Why Tabcorp wants it

BetMakers supplies fixed-odds and tote betting platforms, data services and racing content to wagering operators in more than 30 countries. Gaming.net reported that its Global Tote segment produced about 60% of FY25 revenue and its Global Betting Services segment, which provides bookmaker technology, about 40%. Tabcorp CEO Gillon McLachlan said the acquisition would speed up the company’s technology modernisation and product plans. BetMakers CEO Jake Henson said the combination would give the two businesses a more complete global offering.

The deal fits Tabcorp’s wider overhaul under McLachlan, which also includes a national tote. In July 2026 Racing NSW agreed to a package with Tabcorp that approved merging the NSW TAB, SuperTAB and UniTAB pools into one national pool, subject to sign-off from state gambling regulators.

What it means for punters

For customers, a technology acquisition matters mostly through the products it supports: betting apps, tote displays and how quickly new markets appear. The rules that protect punters do not change with ownership. Licensed bookmakers must still offer deposit limits, take part in BetStop and follow federal advertising rules. Our guides to setting limits, BetStop and the Interactive Gambling Act set out those obligations, and our sports betting vs casino games explainer compares bookmaker margins with casino house edges.

$0.24 cash per share, which values BetMakers’ equity at about $283 million on a fully diluted basis and implies an enterprise value of about $267 million.

The companies are targeting the third quarter of Tabcorp’s 2027 financial year (January to March 2027), subject to shareholder, court, ACCC and regulatory approvals.

Up to $30 million a year in cost savings by the end of the second year of ownership, mainly from merging technology infrastructure and contracts.

Sources

Header photo: GGF Race7b by Noah Salzman, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.