Ladbrokes-Coral sells stores to Betfred and Stan James
17 October 2016
Ladbrokes and Coral have concurred to sell 359 shops to rival betting companies in what they state is the "last considerable obstacle" for their ₤ 2.7 bn merger.
Betfred, owned by billionaire Fred Done, will buy 322 shops and Stan James the other 37 for a total of ₤ 55.5 m.
Competition regulators ruled in July that Ladbrokes and Coral should bet9ja's welcome offer 350-400 stores for their merger to be cleared.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will now examine the shop deals, external.
Jim Mullen, the president of Ladbrokes, stated: "The sale of these stores will clear the last substantial difficulty to delivering on the merger with Coral and leads the way for our focus on completion and rapidly delivering on the chances the merger uses."
The two bookies stated they would seek approval from the CMA to complete the merger once they bet9ja's welcome offer one .
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 shops in Britain.
A merger between the two would make them the UK's biggest High Street bookie.
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 reinforce its online offering.
It was commonly reported, external over the weekend that William Hill plans to press ahead with the ₤ 4.5 bn offer regardless of misgivings from its largest shareholder.
Ladbrokes-Coral should sell 350-400 stores
26 July 2016
William Hill investor snubs merger strategy
14 October 2016
Investors - Ladbrokes plc
