Private equity firm Waterland Private Equity has acquired a majority stake in Napoleon Games, a Belgian specialist in gaming and sports betting.
Napoleon Games was founded in the ‘50s and has grown into the Belgian market leader in the gaming sector. The group is primarily known for its successful online platform (napoleongames.be), and is among others sponsoring AA Gent, the reigning champion in Belgian football, as well as the professional cycling team Sunweb-Napoleon Games. Over the last few years, the group has grown rapidly and completed its product offering through significant investments in the online platform.
In order to sustain this growth, Napoleon Games opted to attract a strategic partner to strengthen its balance sheet. Waterland will support Napoleon Games on a financial, strategic and operational level through the next growth phase.
CEO Tom De Clercq, says: “Over the last years, we have grown significantly in the online market where we compete with large international players. We were able to leverage our knowledge and expertise in the offline market to quickly become the Belgian market leader in online gaming. The partnership with a committed and financially strong partner such as Waterland will ensure this market leading position in the future.”
“The acquisition of the Knokke casino in 2013 completed our product offering. We have made significant investments over the past years to offer our customers a truly revolutionary experience," says Mieke Michiels, co-shareholder of Napoleon Games.
“To Waterland, this investment is fully aligned with our strategy to invest in growing, qualitative market leaders. Our relevant experience in the Dutch and German gaming industry will certainly be of use to implement our growth strategy at Napoleon Games,” says Cedric Van Cauwenberghe (pictured), Partner at Waterland Private Equity Investments.
