FantasyDraft acquire Fantasy Aces; Illinois, Iowa new DFS bills

Daily fantasy sports operator FantasyDraft has acquired rival Fantasy Aces, as the DFS minnows gear up to compete with the new DraftKings–FanDuel behemoth.

The Toronto-listed Fantasy Aces suspended trading in its shares on Wednesday pending a major announcement. On Thursday, the company announced that Fantasy Draft would be acquiring its player base and their respective account balances.

A message on the Fantasy Aces website alerted players that the transition will be complete within five business days. Fantasy Aces has canceled all its upcoming contests and entry fees will be refunded to player accounts.

It was only last September that Fantasy Aces was on the other end of the acquisition game, taking on the player base of rival Fantasy Feud. The frantic deal-making reflects the concerns of the DFS sector’s minor players that they’ll need all the liquidity they can get to compete with whatever we’re calling the soon-to-be-merged DraftKings-FanDuel combo.