Appleby acted as Isle of Man legal advisor to Oldford Group, parent company of the PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker brands, during its sale to Amaya Gaming Group Inc. (TSX:AYA) for an aggregate purchase price of US$4.9 billion.

It is believed to be one the highest value local deals ever completed in the Isle of Man, and also one of the first transactional mergers under the Isle of Man Companies Act 2006.

Through the deal, Amaya Gaming Group acquired 100% of the issued and outstanding shares of Oldford Group Limited, parent company of Isle of Man-based Rational Group, the world’s largest online poker business and owner and operator of the PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker brands.

The Appleby team was led by both Simon Harding, a partner in the Corporate & Commercial department, and Kyle Sutherland, counsel in the Corporate & Commercial department.

Simon said: ‘We welcomed the opportunity to provide expertise on Manx law to the Oldford Group during what was a large and complex deal. It involved a number or organisations across many jurisdictions and some unique aspects, including the fact the acquisition was effected via a statutory merger under the 2006 Companies Act, making it one of the first transactional mergers under that legislation.’

Kyle added: ‘We were delighted to have been involved in this transaction. Appleby has been advising Oldford Group for many years and we have seen it grow from strength to strength. It has been a privilege to have played a role in assisting the shareholders of Oldford in completing this deal.’

Herzog, Fox & Neeman acted as lead counsel to Oldford Group.

Photo- Simon Harding