888 Holdings Purchase of non-US William Hill Assets Nears Completion

Next month is expected to see the completion of the by 888 of the non-US assets of William Hill from Caesars Entertainment. Approval of the deal was received from the shareholders of 888.

It’s the climax of a long-running story that shows the links between the expanding US gambling industry and that in the UK.

When states in the US began to legalize sports betting, American companies sought to create partnerships with UK companies. That was a logical move for companies such as Caesars Entertainment to make.

The UK has had a successful gambling industry for many decades now. This includes shops in city centers and then came the internet. William Hill is one of the UK’s oldest bookmakers and has also enjoyed great success online.

They began working with Caesars Entertainment in setting up online sportsbooks in states where sports betting had been legalized. In time, Caesars Entertainment took the decision to launch a takeover bid for William Hill.

In 2021, that deal took place and it cost Caesars approximately $2.9 billion to seal the deal. However, they then took the decision to put the non-US assets of their new purchase up for sale. The opinion was that they had little experience of the European market, so it was best to concentrate on the US where they had considerably more experience.

The non-US William Hill assets were much sought after. All those High Street betting shops and the successful online site. Many companies were interested in making a bid for them, but it was 888 who became the purchasers in September of last year.

As the William Hill assets are higher than those of 888, this was classified as a reverse exactly a close vote. 99.7 per cent was in favor and now the deal is expected to be completed sometime in June.

The non-executive chairman of 888 Holdings is Lord Mendelsohn. He’s “delighted” that the deal has been approved. It’s one he believes is a “transformational acquisition” for the company. His hope is it will see 888 become “a global online betting and gaming leader.”

It’s always handy when a purchase costs you less than initially expected. That is the case here as the cash portion of the deal was originally going to cost 888 $834.9 million. That’s now been cut to $584.9 million, a reduction of $250 million.

Why is this the case? The gambling industry is one that is forever changing. That is particularly the case when it comes to regulation. In the UK, there is a review of the 2005 Gambling Act, and the UK Gambling Commission is getting stricter with the companies they have issued licenses to.

One concern over William Hill is a review of their license. Already, they have put aside £15 million in case any fines are placed upon them. The UK Gambling Commission are not afraid to fine license holders. Areas such as how they deal with problem gamblers and anti-money-laundering policies regularly result in fines being levied. 888 know that only too well having received a fine of $9.4 million earlier this year.

With more regulation likely in the future, the situation in the UK may well change for the worse in the future. That may be another reason why US companies decide not to be taking over UK companies.

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