ladbrokes-gala-coral-deal-clearance-may-depend-on-shop-sales

Ladbrokes-Gala Coral deal clearance might depend on store sales

Bookmakers Ladbrokes and Gala Coral may have to shed hundreds of shops if their proposed merger is to go ahead, the competitors guard dog has actually said.

The Competition and Markets Authority stated a merger of the UK's 2nd and third largest bookies might limit competitors on the High Street.
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About 350 to 400 stores may have to be offered "for the merger to be conditionally cleared", the CMA said.
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The CMA has offered until 13 June for responses to its provisionary findings.

Ladbrokes operates 2,154 betting stores in Great Britain and 77 in Northern Ireland, while Gala Coral operates about 1,850 wagering stores in Great .

The combined group would make it bigger than current market leader William Hill.
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Martin Cave, who is chairing the CMA's inquiry, said: "We have actually provisionally found that the merger between 2 of the biggest bookies in the country may be expected to lower competitors and option for customers in a big number of areas.
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"Although online wagering has actually grown substantially recently, the evidence we've seen verifies that a big number of clients still select to bet in stores - and many would continue to do so after the merger.

"For these consumers, competitors comes from the option of stores in their area and it's they who could lose from any reduction of competition and option."

The CMA stated it was intending to release its last report by the end of July.
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Ladbrokes stated: "This is a substantial step and our focus now will be on agreeing the store disposals to please the CMA." Ladbrokes shares had actually leapt 6.5% by the close of trade on Friday.

Gala Coral stated it noted that the CMA was "provisionally minded to clear the proposed merger" and that it would continue to work with the regulator on ways to achieve last clearance.
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Analysis: Frank Keogh, BBC Sport racing reporter:
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The face of Britain's wagering shops has actually transformed in the last 20 years - from smoky boltholes with horse racing dominating proceedings to glossy multi-screen sport outlets where fixed-odds wagering terminals are a huge earner.

While critics state the casino-style machines have encouraged issue gamblers, the bookmakers insist personnel are trained to keep an eye out for issues.
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The bottom line is the rise of the machines has actually assisted keep a lot of these stores open in a modern-day wagering world where online gambling has actually mushroomed.

And while some shops look predestined to be casualties, this promotion code proposed ₤ 2.3 bn merger shows there is plenty of cash still to be made in the British wagering market.

Analysts state the merged company will still have a dominant position even if many stores need to be sold.

"We expect significant cost saving will be possible because there will be huge areas of overlap and unnecessary duplication of functions across the combined service," said Steve Clayton, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown.
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Ladbrokes concurred the regards to a ₤ 2.3 bn all-share merger with Coral in July, and the company's shareholders backed the bet9ja's welcome offer in November.

Ladbrokes revenues hit by writedowns

11 August 2015
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