France clears Banijay Gaming’s JOA acquisition
France’s competition authority cleared Banijay Gaming’s proposed acquisition of JOA without conditions on November 4. The decision concerns exclusive control of a business operating 33 French casinos and advances the acquisition plan announced in July.
Banijay notified the Autorité de la concurrence of the transaction on October 7. The regulator stated: “The Autorité has today cleared the transaction without conditions.” It found no direct overlap between the parties’ French casino activities because Lov Group, the wider group behind Banijay, was not already active in that land-based market.
The review nevertheless examined relationships between online poker and casino table games. The authority found a shared customer base and a willingness among poker players to move between online platforms and physical casinos.
Poker links examined in competition review
The authority assessed whether combining those activities could enable commercial bundling that harmed competition. It concluded that the parties’ market positions, significant competitors and poker’s limited contribution to JOA’s overall casino business meant the transaction was unlikely to produce harmful conglomerate effects. No corrective commitments were imposed.
Banijay’s July announcement identified funds managed by Blackstone and Kings Park Capital as the sellers and said JOA Chairman Laurent Lassiaz would continue leading the business with its existing management team. The company described plans to contribute technology, customer relationship management, data and artificial intelligence capabilities while retaining JOA’s operating strengths.
Competition clearance does not itself establish that the acquisition has closed. Banijay’s announced timetable envisaged completion during the second half of 2026, subject to employee consultation and regulatory requirements, including casino gaming approvals. The competition authority also declined to assess a hypothetical French online casino market, saying legalization was not sufficiently plausible at the decision date.
