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Czech billionaire set to get $750m windfall after listing lottery operator in New York

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Czech billionaire Karel Komárek is set to a receive a payout worth $750m (£572m), after floating the gambling company, that is set to take over from Camelot in running the UK’s National Lottery, on the New York stock exchange.

Komárek is set to be the main beneficiary of a $750m cash windfall, after he lists European lottery operator Allwyn on the New York stock exchange through a deal with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), according to The Times.

The float comes after the Gambling Commission picked Allwyn to take over from Camelot in running the UK’s National Lottery. On Friday, Camelot said it would be launching a High Court challenge against the UK’s gambling commission over its decision to award the contract to Allwyn.

Allwyn Entertainment will take over the lottery, after Camelot’s license expires in 2024. Camelot, which is owned by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, has run the UK’s national lottery since it was first launched in 1994.

Born in the Czech town of Hodonín in 1969, Komárek built his multibillion-euro fortune through investing in the Czech Republic’s oil and gas industry, after launching his KKCG investment company in 1992.  

KKCG now runs a portfolio of 30 different companies operating in various sectors, including tech, real estate, gambling, and energy. Allwyn, a subsidiary of Komárek’s KKCG Group, runs lotteries in Austria, Italy and Greece.  

The UK’s National Lottery has the potential to deliver hundreds of millions in dividends over the course of its ten-year license.