Ladbrokes-Coral sells stores to Betfred and Stan James
17 October 2016
Ladbrokes and Coral have agreed to sell 359 shops to rival betting firms in what they state is the "last considerable difficulty" for their ₤ 2.7 bn merger.
Betfred, owned by billionaire Fred Done, will purchase 322 shops and Stan James the yohaig code other 37 for a total of ₤ 55.5 m.
Competition regulators ruled in July that Ladbrokes and Coral must bet9ja's welcome offer 350-400 buy their merger to be cleared.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will now examine the shop deals, external.
Jim Mullen, the yohaig code president of Ladbrokes, stated: "The sale of these shops will clear the last considerable difficulty to providing on the merger with Coral and paves the way for our focus on completion and quickly delivering on the opportunities the merger uses."
The 2 bookies said they would seek approval from the CMA to finish the merger once they bet9ja's welcome offer one additional 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 in between the 2 would make them the UK's largest High Street bookie.
However, William Hill is seeking its own tie-up with Canadian operator Amaya, owner of the PokerStars franchise, to stay up to date with the competition and reinforce its online offering.
It was widely reported, external over the weekend that William Hill prepares to press ahead with the ₤ 4.5 bn offer despite misgivings from its biggest investor.
Ladbrokes-Coral must sell 350-400 stores
26 July 2016
William Hill investor snubs merger plan
14 October 2016
Investors - Ladbrokes plc
