Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan is taking a chance on the Irish lottery.
The C$129.5 billion (US$116.2 billion) pension fund last week announced it had finalized a licensing agreement to operate the Irish National Lottery for 20 years through Premier Lotteries Ireland, a consortium majority owned by OTPP.
Toronto-based OTPP paid the Irish government e405 million (US$554 million) for the license, according to a news release on OTPP's website. PLI will begin operating the lottery by the end of this year.
OTPP also owns Camelot Group, which operates the U.K. National Lottery and will advise PLI on operating the Irish lottery.
An Post, Ireland's postal service, had operated the Irish lottery since it was started in 1986, said Deborah Allan, OTPP spokeswoman. An Post holds a minority stake in PLI.
Since inception, the Irish National Lottery has paid out e6.7 billion in prizes and raised e4.2 billion for a variety of Irish charities and government-sponsored efforts in sports, youth assistance, arts and language, according to the lottery's website. The Irish lottery's proceeds will continue to go to those causes, Ms. Allan said.
