William Hill in Talks to Buy 888

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Shares of 888 Holdings boomed on the London Stock Exchange on Tuesday as word broke that William Hill was in talks to buy the fellow gaming giant. Shares of 888 were up 26.50 pence apiece, or 18%, to settle at 171.50. 888 has already confirmed that it is in takeover talks with William Hill, eliminating any shred of doubt that a deal is being discussed.

Whether a transaction actually happens remains to be seen. 888 issued a statement to regulators on Tuesday that read in part, “The Board of the Company confirms that it received an approach regarding a possible offer for the Company by William Hill PLC. There can be no certainty, however, that any firm offer will be made nor as to the terms on which any firm offer might be forthcoming.” A follow-up announcement will be made within four weeks.

According to Gambling Compliance, “William Hill is in advanced talks with the operator and has made a 210 pence per share offer for the company, although one of the company’s founding Israeli families is said to be holding out for an offer in the region of 300 pence.” eGaming Review added that a “preliminary agreement” had been reached.

Any deal could have broad-reaching implications for the US market, as Chris Grove from Online Poker Report outlined on Twitter:

888 already has a New Jersey-facing online poker site that partly shares liquidity with WSOP.com. In Nevada, the company could soon be launching a branded site as well as one for Treasure Island. As is the case in New Jersey, 888 powers WSOP.com’s software in Nevada. 888’s software is the backend for all three of Delaware’s regulated online poker sites.

Therefore, William Hill could hold the reigns of 888’s holdings in each state as well as its non-US dot-com arm. It would be well-positioned for future growth in the American market.

As Adam Krejcik pointed out on Twitter, it has been a busy last eight months for the gaming industry. Last June, Amaya Gaming bought PokerStars and Full Tiltfor almost $5 billion. Earlier this month, Intertainfinalized a deal to buy Gamesys. Amaya has also been rumored to be purchasing bwin.party, although no deal has been announced. And now, we have William Hill potentially buying 888.

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