GiG Buys Control of 888AFRICA and Brings a B2C Growth Engine Into a Leaner iGaming Platform

GiG Software has agreed principal commercial terms with Virtual Emerging Entertainment Limited, an Evoke plc subsidiary, to purchase 80% of 888 Africa Limited. The stated consideration is €16.4m: €6.0m at the initial payment and €10.4m deferred. The definitive share purchase agreement and approvals remain ahead, while GiG’s Q2 presentation places completion by the end of September 2026.^{[1] [3]}

Commercially, the transaction changes the composition of GiG. The buyer is a B2B technology and services supplier that entered 2026 focused on cost reduction, CoreX migration and a more selective launch pipeline. 888AFRICA gives that platform a B2C operating business which GiG describes as profitable, cash-generative and high growth. Its investor presentation cites a c.$50m annualised NGR run rate, 30% year-on-year Q2 revenue growth and more than $1m of net cash generated in the quarter.^[3]

The purchase is structured to keep the original operating team invested. GiG says the founders retain the remaining 20% and stay active in management. In a business where country selection, payments, local product and customer acquisition are core operating disciplines, that retention is more than a governance footnote. It preserves local operating knowledge while the buyer supplies capital, public-market reporting and a broader technology platform.

GiG completed a €2.5m directed share issue and entered into €6.0m of two-year convertible loans on 26 August. The new capital totals €8.5m, which exceeds the €6.0m initial consideration before transaction costs and general corporate purposes. The equity issue was priced at SEK 1.725 per SDR and represents c.9% dilution on issue. The loans carry 15% annual interest, paid semi-annually, and permit conversion of 25% of principal every six months at a 10% discount to the ten-day VWAP preceding the conversion notice.^[2]

The lender and subscriber list also matters. GiG identifies its largest shareholders, the MJ Foundation and ZJ Foundation, plus chief executive Richard Carter, as subscribers to the share issue. Carter, Myrild AS and Nalavio Limited are named as convertible lenders. That combination gives the buyer speed at a point when the seller has a time-sensitive 2026 conversion right in its historic 888AFRICA funding structure. It also puts both equity and conversion overhang squarely into the post-close capital-management agenda.^{[2] [7]}

888AFRICA began in 2022 as a joint venture between 888 and five industry veterans. The original structure paired the 888 brand with a locally experienced management team, a third-party technology platform and products designed for African-market preferences. The founding team included Christopher Coyne, Andrew Lee, Alex Rutherford, Ian Marmion and Helen Scott-Allen.^[5]

Four years later, GiG’s presentation describes an operator that grew from a late-2022 start-up into a c.$50m annualised NGR run rate. The disclosed current operating footprint is Mozambique, Angola and Tanzania. GiG calls Mozambique a market-leading position, while 888AFRICA’s own CEO has explained that country entry depends on political stability, workable tax conditions and room for sustainable customer acquisition.^{[3] [6]}

The asset’s practical value sits in its operating flywheel rather than a headline revenue multiple. Regulatory access, mobile product design, payment conversion, customer support and marketing calibration move together in each country. GiG’s public presentation gives investors a useful operating snapshot, but it is not a set of audited stand-alone accounts. Target contribution, tax rates, cohort economics and the composition of annualised NGR remain items for fuller disclosure after signing or close.

GiG reported Q2 2026 revenue of €8.8m and adjusted EBITDA of €0.8m, following H1 revenue of €17.8m and adjusted EBITDA of €1.0m. The reported top line was affected by the insolvency of Richmond Atlantic and lower non-recurring revenue. Management has responded with €4.5m of annualised savings delivered and a further €6.0m targeted, primarily through the closure of the white-label business and exits from the United States and Philippines.^[3]

The operating reset gives the 888AFRICA move a more specific logic than simple geographic expansion. GiG’s core business is actively shifting customers from the legacy Alira platform to CoreX, rationalising a lower-return footprint and concentrating investment on contracted launches and regulated markets. The acquisition introduces a B2C cash-generation profile beside that refocused B2B base. In management’s language, it is intended to create a more diversified group and a second engine of growth.^[3]

Acquiry inference The buyer is not merely adding a territory. It is attempting to exchange part of the volatility inherent in client launch cycles for direct exposure to an operator whose economics are controlled closer to the player relationship. The evidence behind that case will be the combined group’s cash conversion after the acquisition and the first reporting period that separates recurring B2B growth from the B2C contribution.