Toronto-based Score Media and Gaming Inc. has filed preliminary documents for a U.S. initial public offering on the Nasdaq exchange as it prepares to expand its sports betting offerings.
The company plans to offer five million shares at a price that has not yet been determined, and trade under the ticker SCR. Based on Monday’s closing price on the Toronto Stock Exchange, the new offering would raise about US$180-million.
It said proceeds from the IPO will go toward expanding the company’s online sports betting platform in Canada and the United States, where legislation to liberalize sports betting has investors excited about the future of the industry.
The company, known as theScore, provides sports news and information to users of its mobile app, which has about four million monthly active users. ScoreBet, its online betting platform, is available in four U.S. states: Colorado, New Jersey, Iowa and Indiana.
On Feb. 10, the company executed a 10-to-1 reverse stock split to improve its viability for a U.S. listing. The company did not offer a price range it expects for the U.S. shares.
“The offering will be priced in the context of the market with terms, including price per share, to be determined at the time of entering into an underwriting agreement with the underwriters,” the company said in a press release.
TheScore also praised the House of Commons last week for passing a vote on Bill C-218 – a private member’s bill that would decriminalize single-game sports betting in Canada. The legislation is being reviewed by the standing committee on justice and human rights this week.
Currently, sports bets in Canada must include at least two events in a single wager, commonly known as parlay betting.
TheScore has also expressed support for Bill C-13, a Liberal government bill which would also decriminalize single-game sports betting, except for horse racing. Bill C-13 passed its first reading in the House of Commons last November.
In 2019, U.S. casino giant Penn National Gaming Inc. bought a US$7.5-million equity stake in the company, and struck a 20-year agreement that provides theScore access to sports betting markets in 11 U.S. states where Penn National operates casinos and racetracks. Eighteen U.S. states and the District of Columbia allow single-game sports betting.
Canaccord Genuity, Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse and Macquarie Capital will underwrite the IPO. McCarthy Tétrault LLP and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP will be theScore’s legal advisers.
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