Canadian pension fund buys UKÔÇÖs lottery operator

The Canadian pension fund Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (TeachersÔÇÖ), is to buy the UK firm Camelot, which runs the country's National Lottery, it has been announced.  The deal, which is worth around ┬ú389 million (C$590 million), is subject to approval by the National Lottery Commission, which licenses and regulates gambling in the UK. TeachersÔÇÖ beat off competition from the private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, which also bid for Camelot. Camelot has been running the UKÔÇÖs National Lottery since it started in 1994. It was awarded its third license in 2009, which runs for a decade. The firmÔÇÖs shareholders, who include De La Rue Holdings, the Royal Mail, Thales Electronics, Cadbury and Fujitsu, announced their intention to sell around a year ago. Commenting on the deal, Wayne Kozun, TeachersÔÇÖ senior vice president of Public Equities, said: ÔÇ£As a pioneer in direct investing, and with an excellent global investment track record, we look forward to partnering with management to realize the full potential of the Camelot business over the remaining licence term and into the future.ÔÇØ Lee Sienna, vice president of Long Term Equities added: ÔÇ£We believe that Camelot is a world leading lottery operator and we are delighted to be involved with such a company which presents a unique, long term opportunity to earn attractive risk-adjusted returns.ÔÇØ He concluded: ÔÇ£Camelot is an excellent example of a first class business with long term potential and we look forward to making further investments to grow the company. Dianne Thompson, chief executive of Camelot Group, said: ÔÇ£We welcome TeachersÔÇÖ commitment to The National LotteryÔÇÖs ongoing success, and look forward to the opportunity of working with them to continue our progress in developing the business and delivering even more money for the Good Causes.ÔÇØ Since its creation, the National Lottery has raised more than ┬ú24 billion (C$36 billion) for good causes in areas such as education, sports and heritage. Sales of the game have been rising recently, with Camelot attributing this in part to the growing number of people choosing to play online or via their mobile phones. The National Lottery Commission will have to consider whether or not national interest in the UK will be served by the sale, and will take up to three months to reach a decision. TeachersÔÇÖ runs the pension fund for more than a quarter of a million Canadian teachers. It already has a range of investments in the UK, including in Birmingham and Bristol airports and a 27 percent stake in Northumbrian Water.