888 and Rank to bid for William Hill

Avi Shaked
Avi Shaked

Israeli online gaming company 888 has confirmed plans to form a consortium with Rank to bid for the British bookmaker.

Israeli online gaming company 888 Holdings plc (LSE:888) and UK casino operator Rank Group (LSE: RNK) has confirmed that they have formed a consortium to consider a joint bid for British bookmaker William Hill (LSE: WMH).

In a joint statement 888 and Rank said, “The consortium sees significant industrial logic in the combination, through consolidation of their complementary online and land-based operations, delivery of substantial revenue and cost synergies and from the anticipated benefits of economies of scale, which will accrue to all shareholders.”

The two companies added, “In relation to the proposed transaction, no decision has yet been taken as to whether 888 would be an offeror or offeree company in respect of certain of the steps that may be taken in order to implement the proposed transaction.”

William Hill issued an unenthusiastic response to the move, saying, "It is not clear that a combination of William Hill with 888 and Rank will enhance William Hill's strategic positioning or deliver superior value to William Hill's strategy."

William Hill has a market cap of $3.6 billion, triple the market cap of each of 888 and Rank. Having declared their intentions, 888 and Rank now have until August 21 to make an official bid.

In February 2015, William Hill offered to buy 888 but the Shaked family held out for more than the £2 per share on offer, and today the 888 share price is worth £2.31.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 25, 2016

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2016

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