Merkur Group Buys White Hat Studios to Grow U.S. Slots

German gaming company Merkur Group has agreed to acquire White Hat Studios, a slots provider that built its reputation squarely on the U.S. market. White Hat Studios now becomes part of Merkur’s portfolio, adding one of the fastest-growing developers in American iGaming to the group. White Hat launched in 2021 and became the first provider to bring online slots to all seven U.S. states where iGaming is regulated. That track record is exactly what drew Merkur’s interest.

The deal gives Merkur a developer with real momentum behind it. White Hat built its name on titles like the House of Brands collection, the award-winning 7s Fire Blitz series, and the Jackpot Royale progressive network. Its catalog now runs past 150 games, including licensed content built around The Goonies, Peaky Blinders, Ted, Flintstones, and Deal or No Deal. The studio also keeps a fast release schedule, pushing out at least six new titles every month.

A U.S.-First Slots Provider Joins a German Group

White Hat Studios president Andy Whitworth called the move a pivotal moment for the company, framing it as the clearest path toward the growth and product innovation the studio has been chasing. He pointed to Merkur’s experience as a resource that will help White Hat build out a stronger omni-channel offering for operators and players alike. That omni-channel language matters here. Merkur is not buying just a slots catalog. It is buying a team that already understands how to operate inside fragmented U.S. state-by-state regulation.

Merkur executives echoed that framing from their side. Lars Felderhoff, who chairs Merkur’s management board, praised White Hat’s growth since launch and said the deal supports the group’s own expansion across regulated iGaming markets. Michael Gauselmann, chairman of Merkur’s supervisory board, tied the move back to the company’s earlier entry into online gaming through its 2012 Blueprint acquisition, calling White Hat a strong addition to that longer strategy.

Building an Omni-Channel Portfolio in the U.S.

This is not Merkur’s first U.S. move, and that context matters. The company previously acquired Nevada-based Gaming Arts, a licensed supplier of games and gaming machines, giving Merkur a foothold in land-based hardware. Pairing that with White Hat’s online-first slots business gives Merkur a rare combination: a supplier that can serve both physical casino floors and regulated online platforms under one roof.

Merkur has also been active outside the U.S. this year. The company recently reopened Victoria Gate Casino in Leeds under its own brand, following an acquisition and a period of closure. Taken together, the Leeds reopening and the White Hat purchase point to a company building out a broader gaming ecosystem rather than chasing single-market wins. Merkur wants assets that connect online and land-based gaming into one strategy, not two separate businesses running in parallel.

What the Deal Leaves Out

The acquisition has real limits. It excludes White Hat’s B2B platform and white-label operations, both of which stay with their current owners. That carve-out suggests Merkur is buying the content engine and brand strength of White Hat Studios rather than the full technical stack behind it. Regulatory approval is still pending too, which is standard for a transaction of this size in the U.S. gaming market, but it means the deal is not yet final.

Whitworth reiterated that the partnership should improve White Hat’s ability to deliver new slot content and build a stronger cross-channel product for operators. That framing suggests players should expect the existing catalog and release pace to continue rather than shift dramatically once the deal closes.

For Merkur, the calculation is straightforward. The U.S. iGaming market keeps adding regulated states, and having a developer already embedded in every one of them is a meaningful head start. Merkur Group now owns exactly that position through White Hat Studios, and this likely will not be the last U.S. move the group makes this year.