Playtech looking for a listing on the London stock exchange? You must be kidding me.

[caruso]

"News", but of immediate practical interest to players:

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Playtech sets the IPO ball rolling

Cyprus-based software firm Playtech has begun plans for a possible listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).

Playtech has met with advisers in London over potential exit plans with an initial public offering (IPO) believed to be a favoured option.

One City source said the firm was looking at a possible listing on the LSE as soon as November.

But a spokesperson for Playtech played down the rumours saying the firm had no plans to list before the end of 2005.

A seperate source close to Playtech said a trade sale was also a possibility.

He added the firm will be closely watching the market reception of casino firm 888 Holdings, which started marketing for a September listing this week.

The 888 flotation will be viewed as a bellwether for the egaming industry, and could potentially delay or cancel some IPOs being considered for later this year.

It will be the first significant test of market appetite for egaming stocks following the share price tumble of PartyGaming last week.

Shares fell by a third following the firms revised forecasts for growth in the poker sector.

Software firms have also suffered share price wobbles in recent months, with CryptoLogics value falling during 2005.

But Playtech is likely to present a strong growth story with the firm adding several major clients in the past year, most notably the recent addition of Empire Online.

Analsyts said the firm could potentially claim a valuation in excess of that attached to rival software firm CryptoLogic of 195m.

Old / Expired Link

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They haven't a hope - unless they can somehow whip it through before anyone can get the facts through to the relevant parties.

African Palace, Indio, Joyland...Kiwi tried a stunt...not a hope.

 

[KasinoKing]

I believe there are websites where you can bet on whether a listed company's shares will go up or DOWN...?

Might be the only way to make money from Playtech...

 

[scrollock]

first we have playtech selling off its crown jewels, erm sorry crown solutions, now they plan to float on the stock market.

no doubt they have sought out the financial advice of their fellow cypriot resident asil nadir

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buying shares with a cypriot company is a bad move at the best of times given that they can disssapear to the north of the island where they are out of the reach of international law and extradition treaties.

given the history of playtech and the actions of of its casinos (some of which could be fronts for playtech aswell), would you really trust their shares to be worth more than the paper they will be written on ?

 

[caruso]

The issue is not trusting the shares, it's that the placing simply cannot go ahead.

 

[Agamemnon]

buying shares with a cypriot company is a bad move at the best of times given that they can disssapear to the north of the island where they are out of the reach of international law and extradition treaties.

Ehh, no they can't. That is to say no more than any investment anywhere in the world. That's a bit alarmist.
That's like saying that shares from a UK company are a bad move because the directors can fly over to the north of Cyprus with the money.
The fact that there exists a no extradition zone to the north doesnt mean anything. You can access that via Turkey (and untill recently only through turkey) from anywhere in the world.
IN Fact that would be more likely from the UK as the Republic of Cyprus -in the EU etc - in the south takes a particularly dim view of capital going to the occupied North unsupervised.

I don't care either way about Playtech or Cyprus but let's separate the legal status of the North from the South especially since a large percentage of egaming gets done for perfectly legitimate reasons (tax etc) from there.
The BBC story you base your facts on certainly doesn't claim the situation is the same on both sides of the Green line.
Given the fact that the country and it's markets are now under EU supervision I'd much rather deal with them rather than some other completely unregulated environment (not to name places).

Btw I wouldn't buy egaming stock at this stage anyway unless on the ground floor for speculation.
Too much of a gamble

 

[paul1]

I believe there are websites where you can bet on whether a listed company's shares will go up or DOWN...?

Do they offer any bonuses?

 

[scrollock]

Do they offer any bonuses?

yes they do