The online gambling company 888 Holdings confirmed a £38-million sale of its bingo operations in order to get the opportunity to focus on its core operations.
The gambling group, which is part of FTSE 250, also shared that it has the potential to receive a further £3 million from the sale of its bingo assets to Saphalata Holdings, which is a unit of Broadway Gaming, in case it hits certain performance targets associated with its revenue over a 6-month period. 888 Holdings further shared that it made a commitment to offering a number of transitional services to Broadway Gaming for a period of 12 months after the completion of the deal, which is expected to happen during the second quarter of 2022.
According to information provided by the Gibraltar-based online gambling group itself, the sale is dependent on the bingo business’ restructuring and the UK gambling regulators subsequently providing the new business with its own operating licence.
888 Holdings explained that the transaction would not only help the company save more money for the planned enhancement of its core platform but would also help the online gambling operator reduce the compliance complexity that occurs as a result of related accounts across the variety of its operations. The temporary closure of land-based casinos and betting outlets during the coronavirus lockdown because of their status as “non-essential businesses” has resulted in sales of online gambling companies such as 888 Holdings over the past few months.
888 Holdings Wants to Focus on Its Core Assets
According to reports, the bingo assets of 888 Holdings generated revenue of almost £50 million in 2020, as well as underlying earnings worth about £5.5 million, although a considerable goodwill impairment brought it to a massive £57-million pre-tax loss.
As explained by Itai Panzer, the Chief Executive Officer of the company, the bingo arm had been a crucial part of the history of 888 Holdings. Mr Panzer shared that the online gambling operator had developed an advanced business-to-business offering alongside a number of well-known customer-facing brands. He further noted that, in his opinion, the future of the bingo business would be bright as part of an enlarged business.
888 Holdings remains hopeful that it would be able to complete the purchase of the non-US assets of William Hill from the gambling, hospitality and entertainment operator Caesars Entertainment before it closes the deal for its bingo assets. As Casino Guardian previously reported, the Gibraltar-based online gambling group will take over the estimated 1,400 retail betting shops of William Hill in the UK and the rest of Europe in a £2.2 billion.
Caesars Entertainment finalised the £2.9-billion acquisition of William Hill earlier this year but shared the intention of disposing of the non-US assets of the British bookmaker at the time. In May, the US casino and entertainment operator initiated a bidding competition for William Hill’s European assets that was eventually won by 888 Holdings.
- Author
Olivia Cole
