After receiving final approval from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice last week, Enthusiast Gaming Holdings Inc. [stock_market_widget type="inline" template="generic" color="default" assets="EGLX.V" markup="(TSXV: {symbol} {currency_symbol}{price} ({change_pct}))" api="yf"] and J55 Capital Corp. [stock_market_widget type="inline" template="generic" color="default" assets="FIVE.P" markup="(TSXV: {symbol} {currency_symbol}{price} ({change_pct}))" api="yf"] have now completed their previously announced merger.
The deal closed this morning, and also sees both Aquilini GameCo Inc. and Luminosity Gaming Inc. joining together through the merger. Under the terms of the deal, J55 is acquiring all of Enthusiast’s issued and outstanding common shares.
Those four entities will now operate under the overall banner of Enthusiast Gaming Holdings Inc., with trading on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker symbol EGLX due to begin Monday, Sept. 9.
Adrian Montgomery will now take up the role as Chief Executive Officer of the merged company, with Menashe Kestenbaum serving as President. Kestenbaum commented on the completed merger process:
The acquisition plan was approved by a majority of shareholders from both Enthusiast and J55 at two special meetings held last month.
Enthusiast currently manages the Vancouver Titans team, which was one of eight expansion franchises added to the Overwatch League during this year’s season.
The Titans began the season with a 4 – 0 victory against the Shanghai Dragons, and subsequently earned a perfect 7 – 0 win streak in the stage 1 playoffs. That streak would continue to a whopping 19 undefeated wins in a row, only recently broken by the San Francisco Shock during the stage 2 finals playoff.
The League’s stage 3 playoffs will begin next week, with the Grand Finals to occur on Sept. 29 in Philadelphia at the Wells Fargo Center.
Aside from operations in the Overwatch League, Enthusiast has signed a support agreement with Vancouver Arena Limited Partnership. Through that agreement, Enthusiast will gain access to marketing services, brand association, and retail support for eSports planning and digital media initiatives.
