Zeal Network has successfully completed the acquisition of Lotto24, the German online provider of state-run lotteries, by way of an all-share public takeover.

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The transaction was supported from the outset by major shareholders holding approximately 65 per cent of Lotto24 shares. Following the approval by the general meeting of Zeal on January 18 2019, the offer was launched on January 31 2019. After the satisfaction of all completion conditions, as announced on April 11 2019, the offer was accepted for 93 per cent of the Lotto24 shares by the end of the additional offer period on April 29 2019.

The total number of shares issued by Zeal now amounts to 22,396,070 (previously 8,385,088). With a stake of approximately 32 per cent of the total enlarged share capital, the Günther Group remains the largest shareholder of Zeal.

Helmut Becker, CEO of Zeal, said: "We are pleased that we were able to convince both Lotto24 and Zeal shareholders of the strategic value of this merger and would like to thank our employees in particular for their great commitment and untiring efforts over the past months. By reuniting with Lotto24, we have created a strong, sustainable platform from which to accelerate online growth in the German lottery market and beyond. We will now work tirelessly for our future success, together."

Later this year, the company intends to reacquire control of its myLotto24 and Tipp24 subsidiaries and transform its German secondary lottery business into a locally-licensed digital lottery broker, building on Lotto24's strong position in the German lottery market. In addition, it plans to relocate its headquarters back to Germany.