Accel Entertainment Illinois Gaming Blog

Accel Entertainment Announces Acquisition of Grand River Jackpot

Written by Accel Entertainment | Aug 29, 2019 8:09:00 PM

We are excited to announce that we have reached an agreement to welcome Grand River Jackpot into our Accel Entertainment family. This is an exciting opportunity as the video gaming market continues to grow. What follows is a repost of a press release announcing the acquisition on BusinessWire.com. A big congratulations to all!

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Accel Entertainment, Inc. (“Accel” or the “Company”), a leading gaming-as-a-service provider, today announced that Accel has agreed to acquire Grand River Jackpot, LLC (“Grand River Jackpot”), one of the first licensed video gaming terminal operators in Illinois, for approximately $100 million in cash. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of September subject to due diligence and other approvals.

Acquisition highlights include:

  • Strengthens Accel’s position in southern Illinois, adding 451 locations with 1,893 video game terminals, with an expected growth rate in locations of 10% by 2021;
  • Accelerates near-term growth opportunities, including the addition of over 100 VGTs as a 6th machine in existing high-performance locations and the go-live of current signed backlog, which is estimated to add 30 additional locations over the next two years; and
  • Drives route efficiencies by bringing key services in-house and utilizing existing fleet and headcount.

Accel CEO Andy Rubenstein commented, “Grand River Jackpot is an attractive and fast-growing company that is a perfect complement to our own geographic footprint in southern Illinois and we look forward to applying our proven operating model to Grand River’s more than 450 locations. The immediately accretive transaction also provides us with more than 1,800 VGTs, enhanced route efficiencies and greater scale as we look to continue to expand into additional markets across the United States.”

“Today’s announcement with Accel is an exciting and natural next step for the evolution of Grand River,” said Gary Hoyer, CEO and President of Grand River Jackpot. “By teaming up with an industry leader like Accel, we are able to immediately accelerate our growth plans and leverage the many benefits that increased scale brings to our owners and customers around the state. Accel is a company we have long admired, with a proven track record of successfully acquiring and integrating companies like Grand River – we could not be more thrilled to become a part of the Accel family.”

About Accel

Accel is the largest terminal operator of slot machines and amusement equipment in the Illinois video gaming market. Starting in October 2012, Accel has been dedicated to providing top of the line care and service to nearly 1,800 locations and customers across the state.

About Grand River Jackpot

Grand River Jackpot, and its affiliates, supply and service video gaming terminals, jukeboxes, pool tables, dart machines and ATMs. Grand River Jackpot was among the first licensed terminal operators possessing years of amusement, casino and gaming experience throughout Illinois and Iowa. Grand River’s gaming professionals and its marketing and executive teams give the company’s clients a powerhouse of know-how, and are ready to help grow their businesses.