Ladbrokes-Coral Sells Shops to Betfred and Stan James
Ladbrokes-Coral sells shops to Betfred and Stan James
17 October 2016
Ladbrokes and Coral have consented to offer 359 shops to competing wagering firms in what they state is the "last considerable difficulty" for their ₤ 2.7 bn merger.
Betfred, owned by billionaire Fred Done, will buy 322 shops and Stan James the other 37 for an overall of ₤ 55.5 m.
Competition regulators ruled in July that Ladbrokes and Coral need to sell 350-400 purchase their merger to be cleared.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will now assess the shop deals, external.
Jim Mullen, the president of Ladbrokes, said: "The sale of these shops will clear the last significant difficulty to providing on the merger with Coral and paves the way for our focus on completion and rapidly providing on the chances the merger offers."
The two bookmakers said they would look for approval from the CMA to finish the merger once they sell one more store.
Market leader
Ladbrokes and Gala Coral are the UK's 2nd and third biggest retail betting companies, behind William Hill.
Ladbrokes has about 2,150 outlets in Britain and 77 in Northern Ireland. Coral runs 1,850 stores in Britain.
A merger between the 2 would make them the UK's biggest High Street bookmaker.
However, William Hill is seeking its own tie-up with Canadian operator Amaya, owner of the PokerStars franchise, to keep up with the competitors and boost its online offering.
It was widely reported, external over the weekend that William Hill plans to push ahead with the ₤ 4.5 bn deal in spite of misgivings from its biggest investor.
Ladbrokes-Coral should offer 350-400 stores
26 July 2016
William Hill financier snubs merger plan
14 October 2016
Investors - Ladbrokes plc
Ladbrokes-Coral sells shops to Betfred and Stan James
17 October 2016
Ladbrokes and Coral have consented to offer 359 shops to competing wagering firms in what they state is the "last considerable difficulty" for their ₤ 2.7 bn merger.
Betfred, owned by billionaire Fred Done, will buy 322 shops and Stan James the other 37 for an overall of ₤ 55.5 m.
Competition regulators ruled in July that Ladbrokes and Coral need to sell 350-400 purchase their merger to be cleared.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will now assess the shop deals, external.
Jim Mullen, the president of Ladbrokes, said: "The sale of these shops will clear the last significant difficulty to providing on the merger with Coral and paves the way for our focus on completion and rapidly providing on the chances the merger offers."
The two bookmakers said they would look for approval from the CMA to finish the merger once they sell one more store.
Market leader
Ladbrokes and Gala Coral are the UK's 2nd and third biggest retail betting companies, behind William Hill.
Ladbrokes has about 2,150 outlets in Britain and 77 in Northern Ireland. Coral runs 1,850 stores in Britain.
A merger between the 2 would make them the UK's biggest High Street bookmaker.
However, William Hill is seeking its own tie-up with Canadian operator Amaya, owner of the PokerStars franchise, to keep up with the competitors and boost its online offering.
It was widely reported, external over the weekend that William Hill plans to push ahead with the ₤ 4.5 bn deal in spite of misgivings from its biggest investor.
Ladbrokes-Coral should offer 350-400 stores
26 July 2016
William Hill financier snubs merger plan
14 October 2016
Investors - Ladbrokes plc