The two former rivals have announced to the stock exchange that they plan to create Paddy Power Betfair Group, an entity in which Paddy Power shareholders would own a 52% stake.
Immediately prior to completion, Paddy Power shareholders would also receive a special dividend of €80m, the firms said.
Breon Corcoran, previously chief operating officer at Paddy Power and currently heading up Betfair, would be chief executive of the mooted new gambling group.
The tie-up is subject to due diligence by both companies first and then approval both by shareholders and competition regulators.
If it goes ahead it would make Paddy Power Betfair one of the world's largest stock market-quoted betting firms.
The announcement came alongside Paddy Power’s results for the first half of the year, which saw the betting firm’s revenue rise by 33%.
Paddy Power had revenues of €527.8m during the six month period, while pre-tax profits rose 31% to €80.5m.
The firm said it had seen growth in both its online and retail divisions as it continued to add outlets in Ireland and Britain.
Paddy Power’s online revenue was €345m in the six months – more than two-thirds of which came from mobile.
http://www.rte.ie/news/business/2015/08 ... r-betfair/
Breaking News BETFAIR Merging with Paddy Power
Conference call
Breon Corcoran, Chief Executive Officer, and Alex Gersh, Chief Financial Officer, will host a conference call for investors and analysts at 10.30 a.m. (BST) today. Access details for the call are as follows:
Access Number: +44 208 996 3900 / +44 844 800 3850
Passcode: 6979 3907
A replay of the call will be available later today on our corporate website:
http://corporate.betfair.com/investor-r ... entre.aspx
Breon Corcoran, Chief Executive Officer, and Alex Gersh, Chief Financial Officer, will host a conference call for investors and analysts at 10.30 a.m. (BST) today. Access details for the call are as follows:
Access Number: +44 208 996 3900 / +44 844 800 3850
Passcode: 6979 3907
A replay of the call will be available later today on our corporate website:
http://corporate.betfair.com/investor-r ... entre.aspx
This is whats posted on the site for anyone who didnt see it
Key Terms
Paddy Power shareholders would own 52 per cent. and Betfair shareholders would own 48 per cent. of the issued and to be issued share capital of the Combined Group;
Immediately prior to completion, Paddy Power shareholders would receive a special dividend of €80 million;
Gary McGann, Chairman of Paddy Power, would become Chairman of the Board of the Combined Group;
Breon Corcoran, CEO of Betfair, would become CEO of the Combined Group. Andy McCue, CEO of Paddy Power would become COO and an Executive Director of the Combined Group. Alex Gersh, CFO of Betfair, would become CFO and an Executive Director of the Combined Group;
The Board of Directors of the Combined Group would also comprise other non-executive directors nominated equally from each of Paddy Power and Betfair; and
The structure of the Possible Merger is being finalised with a view to maximising benefits to shareholders and other stakeholders, and it is expected that the Combined Group will maintain a significant presence in Ireland and in the UK.
Compelling Strategic Rationale
Creation of one of the world’s largest public online betting and gaming companies with revenues of over £1.1 billion (€1.5 billion1) in their last financial years;
The Combined Group’s scale and capabilities would leave it better placed to compete in existing and new markets;
Dual brand strategy in Europe utilising the distinctive and complementary brands of Betfair and Paddy Power;
Complementary online business and geographic mix;
Diversified group with strong platforms across online and retail in the UK and Ireland, and attractive international growth opportunities in Continental Europe, the US and Australia; and
Cost and revenue synergies from efficiencies which reflect the complementary nature of the businesses and through leveraging of the Combined Group’s enlarged scale.
1 Based on GBP/EUR exchange rate of 0.7378
Next Steps
Discussions remain ongoing regarding the other terms of the Possible Merger. The terms of the Possible Merger remain conditional on, inter alia, completion of due diligence and the parties reserve the right to waive these conditions and, with the agreement of the other party, to vary the form of consideration and/or make an offer on different terms. While there can be no certainty that any transaction will occur, Paddy Power and Betfair expect to provide a further update over the coming weeks.
The structure of the Possible Merger remains under consideration. Accordingly until further notice, both the Code and the Irish Takeover Rules apply including the disclosure rules under Rule 8 of the Code and Rule 8 of the Irish Takeover Rules. For the purposes of the Code, Paddy Power is the offeror and Betfair is the offeree. For the purposes of the Irish Takeover Rules, Betfair is the offeror and Paddy Power is the offeree.
In accordance with Rule 2.6(a) of the Code, Paddy Power has until 5.00pm on 23 September 2015 (or such later time and/or date to which this date may be extended by the UK Takeover Panel in accordance with Rule 2.6(c) of the Code and Note 1 on Rule 2.6) to announce either a firm intention to make an offer for Betfair in accordance with Rule 2.7 of the Code or announce that it does not intend to make an offer, in which case the announcement will be treated as a statement to which Rule 2.8 of the Code applies. If the Possible Merger is structured with Betfair as the offeror, this deadline will not apply.
This announcement has been made with the consent of Paddy Power and Betfair.
Key Terms
Paddy Power shareholders would own 52 per cent. and Betfair shareholders would own 48 per cent. of the issued and to be issued share capital of the Combined Group;
Immediately prior to completion, Paddy Power shareholders would receive a special dividend of €80 million;
Gary McGann, Chairman of Paddy Power, would become Chairman of the Board of the Combined Group;
Breon Corcoran, CEO of Betfair, would become CEO of the Combined Group. Andy McCue, CEO of Paddy Power would become COO and an Executive Director of the Combined Group. Alex Gersh, CFO of Betfair, would become CFO and an Executive Director of the Combined Group;
The Board of Directors of the Combined Group would also comprise other non-executive directors nominated equally from each of Paddy Power and Betfair; and
The structure of the Possible Merger is being finalised with a view to maximising benefits to shareholders and other stakeholders, and it is expected that the Combined Group will maintain a significant presence in Ireland and in the UK.
Compelling Strategic Rationale
Creation of one of the world’s largest public online betting and gaming companies with revenues of over £1.1 billion (€1.5 billion1) in their last financial years;
The Combined Group’s scale and capabilities would leave it better placed to compete in existing and new markets;
Dual brand strategy in Europe utilising the distinctive and complementary brands of Betfair and Paddy Power;
Complementary online business and geographic mix;
Diversified group with strong platforms across online and retail in the UK and Ireland, and attractive international growth opportunities in Continental Europe, the US and Australia; and
Cost and revenue synergies from efficiencies which reflect the complementary nature of the businesses and through leveraging of the Combined Group’s enlarged scale.
1 Based on GBP/EUR exchange rate of 0.7378
Next Steps
Discussions remain ongoing regarding the other terms of the Possible Merger. The terms of the Possible Merger remain conditional on, inter alia, completion of due diligence and the parties reserve the right to waive these conditions and, with the agreement of the other party, to vary the form of consideration and/or make an offer on different terms. While there can be no certainty that any transaction will occur, Paddy Power and Betfair expect to provide a further update over the coming weeks.
The structure of the Possible Merger remains under consideration. Accordingly until further notice, both the Code and the Irish Takeover Rules apply including the disclosure rules under Rule 8 of the Code and Rule 8 of the Irish Takeover Rules. For the purposes of the Code, Paddy Power is the offeror and Betfair is the offeree. For the purposes of the Irish Takeover Rules, Betfair is the offeror and Paddy Power is the offeree.
In accordance with Rule 2.6(a) of the Code, Paddy Power has until 5.00pm on 23 September 2015 (or such later time and/or date to which this date may be extended by the UK Takeover Panel in accordance with Rule 2.6(c) of the Code and Note 1 on Rule 2.6) to announce either a firm intention to make an offer for Betfair in accordance with Rule 2.7 of the Code or announce that it does not intend to make an offer, in which case the announcement will be treated as a statement to which Rule 2.8 of the Code applies. If the Possible Merger is structured with Betfair as the offeror, this deadline will not apply.
This announcement has been made with the consent of Paddy Power and Betfair.
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marksmeets302
- Posts: 527
- Joined: Thu Dec 10, 2009 4:37 pm
I realize for many of you here the exchange is linked to your daily income, so naturally you are worried. LeTiss has a good point. But this might also be a good thing. The void that is left behind if the exchange is abandoned/orphaned/whatever will be filled. If not by betdaq, then by someone else.