Sticky Bandits

What is Sticky Bandits?

The premium reflects both the control premium paid to the sellers and Merkur’s valuation for majority ownership.

As Merkur’s acquisition of Casigrangi would grant indirect control over SFC, French regulations require Merkur to launch a simplified mandatory tender offer for the remaining SFC shares it does not already hold. 

This tender offer will be at the same price of €6.19 per share.

About Sticky Bandits

Cirsa has followed an aggressive acquisition strategy in recent years, most recently entering the land-based casino market in Portugal by acquiring a majority stake in Sociedade Figueira Praia, S.A., the owner and operator of Casino Figueira.

Prior to that, Cirsa entered the Paraguay market through an acquisition of the online slots operator Slots del Sol, while it also acquired the leading Peruvian operator Apuesta Total in 2024.

As of June 2025, the company had completed over 130 acquisitions since 2015.

How to play Sticky Bandits

On Aug. 26, Tel Aviv District Court Judge Iris Lushi-Abudi rejected Papaya’s motion to pay down the Skillz judgment over 6.5 years with profits from its continuing operations.

Yaron Elhawi, an attorney based in Tel Aviv representing Skillz, said in court filings that Papaya has not proposed a reformulated debt arrangement, nor suggested how it intends to treat Skillz’s debt.

Papaya granted a $10 million dividend to shareholders at the end of 2025.