Accies Acquisition shareholders approve proposed PlayStudios merger

Accies Acquisition Corp has praised the achievement of a “significant milestone,” after shareholders of the special purpose acquisition company voted in favour of its proposed merger with game developer PlayStudios.

Approximately 97 per cent of the votes cast at the special meeting voted to adopt the merger agreement, which both parties assert they expect to complete as soon as practicable.

“We are excited to support PlayStudios as they embark on their journey as a publicly listed company,” stated  Dan Fetters, co-CEO of Acies

“We believe the company is well-positioned to capitalise on its strategic goals to accelerate growth through continuing to optimise the core portfolio, launch new games, and pursue value accretive acquisitions.”

The transaction was first documented in February, with it said that upon closing the class A common stock and warrants of the combined company, which will be renamed PlayStudios, are expected to begin trading on Nasdaq under the ticker symbols, ‘MYPS’ and ‘MYPSW,’ respectively.

“We are proud to reach this significant milestone in the merger and would like to thank our shareholders for their support throughout the process,” said Edward King, co-CEO of Acies

The transaction implies an enterprise valuation for PlayStudios of $1.1bn, or 2.5x projected 2022 revenue of $435m or 12.3x projected 2022 pro forma adjusted EBITDA of $90m. 

Acies’ management team is led by chairman Jim Murren, formerly chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International, as well as Fetters and King, formerly managing directors at Morgan Stanley. 

PlayStudios is led by Andrew Pascal, founder, chairman, and CEO, who will continue to lead the combined group along with his current founder-led management team. 

Upon disclosing terms of the transaction earlier in the year, it was said that upon closing, and assuming none of Acies public stockholders elect to redeem their shares, existing PlayStudios shareholders are expected to own 64 per cent of the combined company, the Acies sponsors are expected to own three per cent, PIPE participants 18 per cent, and public stockholders 15 per cent