Australia: Tabcorp skips ACCC over Tatts, is given green light

An Australian regulator cleared Tabcorp’s proposed takeover of lottery owner Tatts Group for US$4.67 b, paving the way for a match-up that has fallen through twice before since 2006.

The deal between Tabcorp, Australia’s top horse racing and sports betting company, and Tatts would help create a domestic gambling powerhouse even as the challenge from overseas online rivals mounts. Players such as Britain’s William Hill and Ireland’s Paddy Power have been making inroads since the deregulation of gambling licences in the country in 2012.

The Australian Competition Tribunal (ACT) is “satisfied that the proposed merger is likely to result in substantial public benefits”, its president, John Middleton, said in a written summary on Tuesday.

The ruling vindicates Tabcorp’s decision to bypass the usual arbiter of corporate buyouts, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), and take its planned deal to the Federal Court’s ACT which usually acts as an appeal court.

The ACCC, which has previously blocked a deal between the companies on antitrust grounds, published in March a lengthy list of concerns about the proposed acquisition, although it made no ruling. The buyout fell through second time, in 2015, when the firms failed to come to an agreement.

Full Content: ABC News

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