888 Group Has Completed the Purchase of William Hill International
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888 Holding has extended the list of its services with the purchase of a William Hill business that is not based in the United States. The acquisitional procedures that started in 2021 are finally completed, and William Hill International is officially a part of 888 Group.
The completion of the acquisition has led to several changes in the executive team. Thus, William Hill’s former CEO Ulrik Bengtsson and chief financial operator Eric Hageman have left the group. At the same time, the team of 888 Group was extended with new members. It will continue to be led by CEO Itai Pazner, and the CFO, chief strategy officer and chief operating officer remain the same. However, there is a new chief risk officer. This is Harinder Gill, who will take up his position in August.
The company expects to have pre-tax cost synergies of £100m or more by 2025. The results of the first half of 2022 will be announced later this year, and they will be reported in four separate segments, namely:
- 888 (including the US)
- William Hill Online UK
- William Hill Retail (UK)
- William Hill International
DETAILS OF THE DEAL
Plans to acquire the non-US business of William Hill were announced in September 2021, soon after Caesars Entertainment had bought the entire Willian Hill company for £2.90bn.
As those William Hill’s assets that were to be acquired by 888 were larger than 888 itself, stakeholders of the group had to approve the deal. They approved the acquisition in May 2022 with 307.0 million votes cast in favor of the deal.
Although the initial price was £834.9m, both sides agreed to reduce it to £584.9m taking into consideration the macro-economic and regulatory environment as well as the fact that the UK license of William Hill is under review.
888 Group expects the purchase of William Hill will make their positions in the sports betting field stronger and let them grow their presence in certain markets. The company also anticipates good results from the omni-channel presence in the United Kingdom.
Other leading companies in the gambling industry also make their acquisitions. Thus, Evolution Gaming plans to purchase one more popular software developer. Soon after the acquisition of Net Entertainment, this Estonia-based company announces the purchase of Nolimit City.
Moreover, VIPSpel casino has recently changed its owner. It now belongs to Winzon Group Ltd. which plans to carry out a range of changes at the operator to increase revenue and attract more customers.
