William Hill confirms Australian merger talks with CrownBet
Operator says it is in “preliminary discussions” regarding a possible combination of William Hill Australia and Crown Resorts’ online wagering business
William Hill is in “preliminary discussions” regarding a potential merger between its Australia-facing business and CrownBet, the UK bookmaker announced this morning.
The FTSE 250 bookmaker released a statement today confirming recent speculation in the Australian media regarding a possible deal, but said talks were still at a very early stage.
William Hill said in a statement: “Following media speculation, William Hill confirms that it is in very preliminary discussions with CrownBet, the 62% owned online wagering business of Crown Resorts, regarding a possible combination of William Hill Australia, a wholly owned subsidiary of William Hill, and CrownBet.
“There is no certainty that these preliminary discussions will lead to any transaction.”
A separate statement from Crown Resorts read: “Crown confirms that it is in discussions concerning its interest in CrownBet. There is no certainty as to whether any transaction will eventuate.”
William Hill’s Australia-facing business recently reported a 2% fall in net revenue during the period, with the operator describing the market as “challenging” in light of the credit betting ban and potential nationwide Point of Consumption Tax.
A number of analysts highlighted the performance of William Hill Australia as a particular area of concern for the operator following the trading update.
An analyst note from Deutsche Bank said: “Australia remains disappointing, with further regulatory headwinds flagged such as credit betting which means WMH’s net revenue is being dragged down by the loss of high volume, high margin business.”
Read what other leisure sector analysts had to say about William Hill’s latest trading update here.
Last year, William Hill Australia recorded revenues of £113.8m and an adjusted operating profit of £15.4m.