The French National Lottery has announced that it will be buying out Aleda, a point-of-sale and payment processor company. The two organizations have entered exclusive negotiations and the Lottery has confirmed its intent to buy. This should empower the Lottery to pursue a more aggressive stance over the payment options used to make bets in the regulated markets.

Buying Out Aleda to Boost Payment Experience

Payment processors are an efficient way to monitor and exert control over regulated betting, even in places such as Germany where regulators have conceded that issuing fines to offending parties works less often than pressuring the payment processors that may be clearing the illegal payments.

The Lottery hopes that the acquisition of Aleda will also facilitate the management of established points of sales, making it easier for merchants to sort out transactions. Presently, Aleda is available in more than 2,000 points of sales across France and employs 100 people in the country The company was established in 2005 and focused on providing secure and innovative payment solutions.

Aleda generated €47.82 million ($47.94 million) in revenue in 2021. Thanks to the company’s good standing in the French payment landscape, the Lottery believes that it will be a good fit and in turn generate further value for merchants. The acquisition is also a part of the broader strategy for the FDJ to make betting more accessible. The deal is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.