The multi-billion pound combination of two of
the UK’s largest gaming companies faced a number
of merger control obstacles and shareholder
objections
The £2.4 billion ($3 billion) merger of UK-based
bookmakers Ladbrokes and Gala Coral, which closed on November
2, has offered Coral's private equity owners an alternative
exit route with elements of both a trade sale and an IPO.
The deal proceeded as a reverse takeover of Ladbrokes, a
FTSE 250 company, by Coral, privately-owned by Goldman Sachs,
Cerberus and Apollo, all of which received publicly-listed
stock in the enlarged Ladbrokes Coral group.
According to Davis Polk & Wardwell partner Will Pearce,
who advised the financial advisors, joint sponsors and
bookrunners to Ladbrokes, the transaction timetable was
extended to accommodate the antitrust review process conducted
by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which ordered
the combined entity to sell 359 shops to competitors Betfred
and Stan James...