Dublin's Keywords Studios in advanced talks on multi-billion acquisition deal

The video game services is listed on the London Stock Exchange

EQT had previously made four unsolicited proposals for Keywords, all of which were rejected by the company's board.

Dublin-headquartered Keywords Studios is in advanced talks with European private equity group EQT to acquire it for £2.2bn (€2.6bn).

EQT is negotiating over a possible cash offer of £25.50 per share of London-listed video game services company Keywords, the statement said. This offer represents a premium of about 73% over Keywords' closing share price of £14.70 on Friday.

EQT had previously made four unsolicited proposals for Keywords, all of which were rejected by the company's board, the statement said. The current offer represents a significant increase from the initial proposal, it added.

After careful evaluation with its financial advisors, the Keywords board concluded that it "would be minded to recommend" the proposal to the company's shareholders, the statement said.

Under Britain's takeover rules, EQT has until June 15 to either make a firm offer or walk away.

Established in 1998, Keywords Studios is a global provider of creative and technology-enabled solutions to the video games and entertainment industries and now has over 70 facilities in 26 countries.

Reuters