Ladbrokes in merger talks with Gala Coral Group

Bookmaker Ladbrokes has said it is in talks with the board of Gala Coral Group over a possible merger.

An bet9ja's welcome offer would produce the UK's biggest bookie with nearly 4,000 High Street stores.

The discussions issue integrating Ladbrokes with Coral Retail, Eurobet Retail and Gala Coral's online firms.

Ladbrokes stated there was no certainty that the talks would lead to a deal, and possible terms and timings were also yet to be agreed.

Shares in Ladbrokes rose more than 11% after the statement.

"A merger with Gala Coral could create a combined business with considerable scale and has the possible to generate substantial cost synergies, creating value for both business' investors," primary executive Jim Mullen said.

If the deal goes on, it would see the merged group surpass William Hill as the greatest UK bookie, bringing together around 2,100 stores from Ladbrokes and 1,845 from Coral.

The merger talks do not consist of Gala's 132-strong bingo service.

Mr Mullen included that the firm's board has yet to decide whether a deal would be "strategically attractive" and whether it might be "provided to investors on proper terms."

The firm stated that the deal, if finished, might be classified as a reverse takeover of Ladbrokes.

Ladbrokes formerly tried to purchase Coral in 1998, but its planned takeover was blocked by the government.

The then Trade and Industry Secretary Peter Mandelson stated a merger would lead to "a weakening of rate competitors at the nationwide level" and a decrease in customer option.

Earlier this promotion code year, Ladbrokes reported a large fall in pre-tax revenue for 2014, from ₤ 68m to ₤ 38m, and said that it expected to close 60 UK shops this promotion code year.

Those strategies would be untouched by any handle Coral Group.

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Gala Coral Group