It said Flutter has been granted a period of exclusivity to complete due diligence and finalise the necessary transaction documentation.

Playtech said there can be no certainty that any transaction will ultimately be agreed, nor as to the terms.

Further announcements will be made as and when appropriate, it added.

The statement followed a Sky News report that Flutter was in talks with Playtech over a deal that could be worth about £2bn.

Snaitech, which trades under the brand Snai, saw revenues grow by 5% to €946.6m in the last financial year. A sale of the business to Flutter would leave Playtech as a pure-play B2B company.

At 1130 BST, Playtech shares were up 21% at 648.74p.