Kindred confirms takeover bid from FDJ

(Reuters) -Online gaming company Kindred Group confirmed on Sunday it has received a cash takeover bid from French group La Francaise des Jeux.

The offer will be announced on Monday before the market opens, Kindred said in a statement, noting that FDJ would acquire its entire outstanding share capital.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the offer, saying it could be valued at around $2.5 billion.

FDJ did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In November, FDJ completed the acquisition of Premier Lotteries Ireland, the national lottery operator, for an enterprise value of 350 million euros ($381.40 million).

New York-based hedge fund Corvex Management has been pushing Kindred's board since 2022 to hire a financial adviser to look at strategic alternatives, including the potential value that could be achieved via a sale or a business combination.

Kindred offers online gambling services across Europe, North America and Australia to over 30 million customers through nine brands.

($1 = 0.9177 euros)

(Reporting by Kanjyik Ghosh and Harshita Meenaktshi in Bengaluru; editing by Deepa Babington, Leslie Adler and Richard Chang)