Owners cash in as Betfair shares soar on IPO

[Betfair]

* Founders' gamble pays off, collect 35.5 mln stg
* Shares rise almost 19 percent

LONDON, Oct 22 (Reuters) - The owners of BetFair BETF.L will bank at least 211 million pounds ($333 million) from an initial public offering (IPO) that valued the world's largest internet betting exchange at 1.39 billion pounds on Friday.

One-time professional gambler Andrew Black, who founded the company 10 years ago with former JP Morgan trader Edward Wray, is in line for 18.9 million pounds if an overallotment option is exercised in full, while Wray will get up to 16.6 million.
Shares in Betfair, whose offer comes at a time of resurgence in public offerings as European equity markets trade around six-month highs, were quoted at 1,542 pence at midday, a premium of close to 19 percent on the IPO price.

The shares will officially begin trading on Oct. 27, but are already conditionally being traded.
The share performance also implies a hefty paper profit for Black and Wray, who respectively retain 10.2 percent and 10.7 percent stakes, if the overallotment is exercised, according to the pricing document.
Betfair's platform allows customers to place bets as a punter or take bets in the role traditionally played by a Bookmaker. It matches millions of bets a day on a variety of sports and other events.
RIVALS PAIR UP

It is likely to face competition from the merger of Austrian internet Bookmaker bwin (BWIN.VI) with PartyGaming (PRTY.L), which is set to create the world's biggest listed Internet gambling company worth $3.3 billion. [ID:nLDE69L054]
Betfair said it had priced the offer at 1,300 pence per share, in the top half of its initial guidance of 1,100-1,400 pence.

A source close to the deal said it had been heavily oversubscribed, prompting a narrowing in price guidance to 1,250-1,300 pence early on Thursday.
There was good demand from investors with a technology focus in Britain and the United States, the source added, with interest also from continental Europe.

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UPDATE 5-Owners cash in as Betfair shares soar on IPO | Reuters