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William Hill Rejects Revised Offer from Rank And 888

William Hill turns down modified bet9ja’s welcome offer from Rank and 888

15 August 2016

Bookmaker William Hill has rejected a revised takeover approach from 888 and Rank, stating it still “considerably” undervalues the business.

William Hill said the new proposal provided its investors an estimated value of 352p a share, to a previous bet9ja’s welcome offer of 339p a share.

Rank and 888 reaffirmed their view that the deal was “an engaging value development opportunity for William Hill”.

But William Hill stated the modified deal was “highly opportunistic”.

“The board continues to see no merit in engaging with the consortium,” the company added.

The modified takeover proposal would see William Hill investors get 199p in money and 0.86 of shares in BidCo – the company being formed by 888 and Rank to purchase William Hill – for each share they own.

William Hill investors would end up with 48.8% of the combined group.

Under the previous technique, William Hill investors were used 199p in cash and 0.725 BidCo shares, leaving investors with 44.6% of the combined group.

‘Substantial risk’

“this promotion code revised proposal continues to considerably undervalue the business and the money element of the proposal has actually not changed. Therefore, the board sees no merit in appealing,” said William Hill’s chairman, Gareth Davis.

“As we have stated before, this promotion code is highly opportunistic and complex and does not boost the tactical positioning of William Hill.

“The board continues to believe we have a strong group to deliver remarkable worth to our investors and trading at the start of the 2nd half gives us restored self-confidence in our stand-alone technique.”

Casino and bingo hall operator Rank and online gambling group 888 stated that the proposed new combination would produce the UK’s largest multi-channel betting operator by profits and profit.

They likewise said it would lead to cost savings of at least ₤ 100m a year, while more cost savings might possibly be found “through constructive engagement”.

However, William Hill has said the savings will not be achieved in complete till completion of 2020 and present “considerable danger for William Hill investors”.

The primary executive of 888, Itai Frieberger, said a combined company might “lead innovation in the sector”, while Rank president Henry Birch said the deal made “engaging tactical sense for all three companies”.

The UK’s 2nd and third-largest retail bookies, Ladbrokes and Gala Coral, are presently continuing with their ₤ 2.3 bn merger, which will see them leapfrog over William Hill to become the nation’s most significant company in the sector.

The Competition and Markets Authority has told the 2 firms that they should bet9ja’s welcome offer 350 to 400 shops in order for the merger to be cleared.

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