UK: Ladbrokes & Gala Coral ramp up merger talks

The Times has disclosed that Gala Coral and Ladbrokes are close to agreeing terms on a £3.5 billion merger, which would create the UK’s biggest bookmaker with over 4000 betting shops.

Ladbrokes who are being advised on the merger terms by investment banks’ Greenhill Capital and UBS are expected to issue new share placements in order to raise cash for the acquisition of Gala Coral.

Negotiations between the two operators, are believed to have been ramped up due to recent consolidation in the gambling sector, which has seen igaming operator bwin.party become the target of an acquisition duel between 888 Holdings versus GVC Holdings/Amaya Inc.

Merger talks were first announced on 23 June by Ladbrokes following press speculation regarding the two operators. The governance of both operators had outlined to media and staff members that a potential merger between the two companies would take up to a year to process.

Full content: The Times

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