Goldman Sachs Divests Major Stake in Kindred Group

The globally recognizable gaming group, Kindred Group, confirmed details regarding a major shareholding move. On Thursday, the company revealed it was notified that one of its shareholders, The Goldman Sachs Group, divested a large portion of its stake.

This isn’t the sole shareholding move confirmed by Kindred recently. Earlier this year, the company revealed major shifts in shareholding completed by JPMorgan Chase & Co, as well as The Goldman Sachs Group. After the announcement in May, both companies secured a stake of more than 5% in Kindred.

Before that announcement, in March, Goldman Sachs held a 0.22% stake in Kindred. Then, the company confirmed it increased its stake in the gaming group to 7.99%. Further transactions in May and June resulted in Goldman Sachs securing a 5.42% stake in Kindred.

Ahead of this week’s announcement, Goldman Sachs held a 5.42% stake in Kindred. However, the company notified Kindred it reduced its share to only 0.16%, as of August 16.

“Kindred Group plc (Kindred) hereby announces that it, on 21 August 2024, has received a notification of major holding from The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., a company with its registered office in Wilmington, USA. The notification refers to a decrease in the number of shares and voting rights in Kindred held by The Goldman Sachs Group. According to the notification, the Goldman Sachs Group held 0.16% of the shares and voting rights in Kindred as of 16 August 2024,“

reads a statement released by Kindred Group

A Busy Period for Kindred Group

In light of this year’s Euro 2024, Kindred confirmed its pledge toward responsible gambling. At the time, the company vowed to promote the use of responsible gambling tools. Moreover, Kindred continues to follow its unique program, Journey Towards Zero, which seeks to eliminate the revenue derived from problem gambling.

Earlier this year, the leading gaming operator in France, La Française des Jeux (FDJ), confirmed its intentions to acquire Kindred. The landmark acquisition is expected to close by the end of this year.

Last month, FDJ refuted concerns surrounding the acquisition of Kindred, rejecting claims the deal would result in monopolization. Pascal Chaffard, FDJ’s chief financial officer, said at the time that the company expects to receive approval from the regulatory bodies in France.