Flutter sounds horn on US listing for FanDuel

The board of Flutter Entertainment Plc has this morning announced that it is examining options to pursue a separate US listing for FanDuel. 

An FTSE filing revealed that Flutter’s board believes that listing FanDuel on a US exchange will generate “long-term strategic and capital market benefits for company shareholders”.

The option comes as FanDuel has established itself as Flutter’s largest revenue-generating unit, which in November upgraded its year-end forecast to stand between $3-to-$3.2bn.

FanDuel growth is expected to outpace all Flutter brands, in which leadership anticipates the brand becoming the dominant US leader in a marketplace projected to be worth over $40bn by 2030. 

As such, Flutter’s board has entered an ‘immediate consultation’ to start IPO proceedings, stating that a full US listing “would take precedence over any plans to list a small shareholding in FanDuel.”

Shareholder benefits will include ‘enhancing FanDuel profile as a US business’ and providing better geographic liquidity and localised access to capital markets for the company’s expansion projects.  

Operationally, Flutter believes that a US listing will benefit FanDuel’s recruitment and retention of American talent. A potential US listing had been earmarked since Flutter acquired the company from its VC investors in 2018 for $610m.

At present, FanDuel is recognised as the market-leading sportsbook in the regulated states of New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Iowa, Colorado, Virginia and Pennsylvania – with a reported 47% of total market share according to research by US consultancy Eilers & Krejcik 

Flutter’s board communicated: “We appreciate that this is an important topic for shareholders and intends to consult extensively before deciding whether to put forward a formal resolution for approval.”

“The Group expects to start this consultation immediately. In the event that there is broad shareholder support for an additional US listing, this would take precedence over any plans to list a small shareholding in FanDuel.”