Leading bookmaker William Hill and Amaya, the Montreal, Canada-based owner of the PokerStars brand, are in discussions to join forces in what would be online gaming’s largest ever merger, likely to be worth in excess of £5bn.
Having just dismissed an offer by a combination of Rank and 888, which was worth £2.6bn, William Hill is after a deal of its own, talking with Amaya to diversify into the digital and overseas business. PokerStars is one of the largest players in online gambling with about 70 per cent of the online poker business.
Parent Amaya posted revenues of CAD$1.3bn in 2015, behind William Hill’s £1.5bn, but tipsters in the City were this week speculating that GVC Holdings may also be pitching for Amaya. GVC owns Bwin and Foxy Bingo.
Recent years have seen a great deal of activity in the online gambling business with Ladbrokes and Coral merging, followed by Paddy Power linking up with Betfair and then GVC buying bwin.party. The mergers and consolidation is thought to be the result of a tightening up of the UK’s regulations upping costs for operators.
In response to press speculation, on Saturday William Hill issued a statement confirming the company is in discussions “regarding a potential all-share merger of equals.”
The statement read: “Over recent months, the board of William Hill has been evaluating options to accelerate William Hill’s strategy of increasing diversification by growing its digital and international businesses. Amaya has been undertaking a review of its strategic alternatives since February 2016.
“The potential merger would be consistent with the strategic objectives of both William Hill and Amaya and would create a clear international leader across online sports betting, poker and casino.
“These discussions are ongoing and there can be no certainty that an agreement will be reached.”
