Ladbrokes In Merger Talks With Gala Coral Group

Ladbrokes in merger talks with Gala Coral Group


Bookmaker Ladbrokes has stated it is in talks with the board of Gala Coral Group over a possible merger.
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A deal would develop the UK's greatest bookmaker with nearly 4,000 High Street shops.


The conversations concern integrating with Coral Retail, Eurobet Retail and Gala Coral's online companies.
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Ladbrokes stated there was no certainty that the talks would cause a deal, and possible terms and timings were likewise yet to be agreed.
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Shares in Ladbrokes increased more than 11% after the statement.
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"A merger with Gala Coral might develop a combined company with considerable scale and has the potential to create significant expense synergies, creating value for both companies' investors," primary executive Jim Mullen said.


If the offer goes ahead, it would see the merged group surpass William Hill as the greatest UK bookmaker, uniting around 2,100 shops from Ladbrokes and 1,845 from Coral.


The merger talks do not include Gala's 132-strong bingo business.


Mr Mullen added that the company's board has yet to choose whether an offer would be "strategically attractive" and whether it could be "delivered to investors on appropriate terms."
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The company said that the yohaig code deal, if completed, could be categorized as a reverse takeover of Ladbrokes.
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Ladbrokes formerly attempted to purchase Coral in 1998, however its planned takeover was obstructed by the federal government.
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The then Trade and Industry Secretary Peter Mandelson said a merger would lead to "a weakening of price competition at the yohaig code national level" and a decrease in consumer option.


Earlier this promotion code year, Ladbrokes reported a big fall in pre-tax revenue for 2014, from ₤ 68m to ₤ 38m, and stated that it expected to close 60 UK stores this promotion code year.
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Those plans would be untouched by any deal with Coral Group.


Job loss fears at Ladbrokes Ireland


21 April 2015


Gala Coral Group