888 Holdings completes William Hill International acquisition
1st July 2022 11:55 am GMT | Last updated: 1st July 2022
London-listed betting and gaming operator 888 Holdings has completed its acquisition of William Hill’s non-US business from Caesars Entertainment.
Following completion, 888 has confirmed its new executive leadership team, with William Hill’s former CEO Ulrik Bengtsson and chief financial operator Eric Hageman leaving the group.
The enlarged 888 group will continue to be led by CEO Itai Pazner, supported by CFO Yariv Dafna, chief strategy officer Vaughan Lewis, chief operating officer Guy Cohen, and newly appointed chief risk officer Harinder Gill, who will take up his role on 3 August after joining from Revolut.
“I am delighted to announce the completion of our transformational combination with William Hill,” said Pazner. “We have built an outstanding leadership team, combining strengths from across both businesses, and as I look at the future, the combination of our product and content leadership, powered by our proprietary technology, and our world class brands, gives us a powerful platform for growth.
“I’d like to thank Ulrik and Eric for the great job they have done at William Hill and I wish them well for the future.”
With its interim first half results for 2022 set to be released in August, 888 will initially report results in four segments: 888 (including the US), William Hill Online UK, William Hill Retail (UK), and William Hill International.
The company said that any future organisational changes will be managed with the primary objective of maintaining momentum within each business, with the group looking to achieve anticipated pre-tax cost synergies of at least £100m by 2025.
“This combination brings together two high quality businesses to create a powerful, global betting and gaming business,” said 888 chair Lord Mendelsohn. “We believe the acquisition will create significant value for shareholders, creating a combined business with leading technology, products and brands across sports betting and gaming.
“With a top quality management team, formed from talent from across both businesses, I am confident about our future plans.”
Shares in 888 Holdings plc (LSE:888) were trading 0.89 per cent lower at 166.10 pence per share in London following the announcement earlier Friday, while shares in Caesars Entertainment Inc (NASDAQ:CZR) closed 4.89 per cent lower at $38.30 in New York Thursday.