The ongoing power struggle for control of Ainsworth Game Technology (AGT) has taken a new and dramatic twist as the founder’s son has made a fresh bid for shares.
The slot manufacturer confirmed that Kjerulf Ainsworth, son of the company’s founder Len Ainsworth, intends to offer AU$1.30 (£0.69) per share to acquire a further 5.5% of ordinary shares in AGT – potentially raising his stake in the company to a maximum of 13.25%.
This follows a previous offer from Ainsworth lodged in October to acquire up to 2.9% of shares in retaliation to the resilience of Novomatic to complete a takeover of AGT.
In a letter to shareholders, Ainswoth confirmed that the deal will be structured like a proportional takeover, allowing shareholders to sell only a portion of their holdings while retaining an interest in the company.
The company said: “As with my previous proportional takeover bid, which closed on 30 January 2026, the Offer will deliver an attractive premium relative to historical trading prices in Shares for a portion of each Shareholder’s investment in AGT.
“Shareholders will continue to participate in any future improvement in AGI’s performance by retaining the balance of their holdings.”
War of words with Novomatic
Ainsworth has been a long-running critic of the efforts of Novomatic to complete a takeover of AGT – describing the Austrian firm’s offer of AU$1 (£0.53) per share as considerably undervaluing the company.
According to the release, this latest offer from Ainsworth represents a 23.8% premium on AGT’s closing share price on 10 March and the volume-weighted average price of the shares over the last 30 days.
Ainsworth said in October: “I believe AGT is currently significantly undervalued, and that it represents an excellent investment opportunity in an industry that continues to grow globally.”
Novomatic currently holds a 66.59% share in AGT. However, the company’s attempt to purchase all the shares it did not already own failed in February after it did not gain enough shares to take control of AGT.
For now, Novomatic are prevented from making a new offer in the next four months. However, given the company’s dogged pursuit, it is unlikely that Novomatic will abandon its attempt to purchase AGT.
AGT booked a net loss of AU$19.2m (£10.2m) in its 2025 financials reported in February, despite recording growth in its Asia-Pacific segment. The losses were attributed to a AU$43.1m (£23m) non-cash impairment of goodwill included in its 2025 results due to the underperformance of its North American business.
