Quicksilver deal bets on further growth

The owner of amusement arcade chain Quicksilver plotted further expansion today after agreeing to a multi-million pound takeover from Australia.

Talarius, which runs almost 200 slot machine centres in the UK, has agree to a takeover by European Gaming, a joint venture company set up by Australian gaming group Tattersall’s and the investment bank Macquarie.

The £137.2m (€203m) deal is aimed at helping European Gaming gain a foothold in the continent’s lucrative arcade market, while offering Talarius help in developing its chain.

At the moment, Quicksilver outlets stretch from Fife in Scotland to Poole in the south and from Great Yarmouth in the east to Bristol in the west.

Talarius said it would welcome support as it tried to expand the chain - possibly outside the UK.

The company said it was eyeing up “several potential acquisitions”, but thought the moves would carry “greater execution risk” than before.

The firm also said while the smoking ban in Scotland had not hit as hard as anticipated, there could be no certainty similar laws due to be introduced in England and Wales next year would not hurt the group’s trading performance.

If the deal is rubber-stamped by shareholders, then Talarius will be delisted from the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) and taken into private ownership.

However, a spokesman for European Gaming insisted today that the existing management team, which is based in Milton Keynes, would be kept on.

Brendon Redmond, director of European Gaming, said: “We plan to build on Talarius’s existing foundation and develop the Talarius group in line with its stated strategy.”

The acquisition of Leisurama Entertainments in March for £12m (€17.8m) helped raise the number of Quicksilver-branded sites around the country to 197.

Talarius picked up Leisure Promotions, In-To-Save and Edinburgh Dungeon for £10.65m (€15.8m) in July 2005.

The group’s gaming machine estate now includes around 10,000 machines, while the number of people employed is in the region of 1,100. The chain boasts its own in-store radio station.

Since August 2001, Talarius also runs the Cyberslotz virtual gaming lounge, which is amongst the ten most visited online gaming sites in the UK.

Meanwhile, Tattersall’s operates lotteries under government licences in Australia and runs competitions in five Pacific Island nations. It also helped develop South Africa’s first national lottery.