Historic Vote Relinquishes William Hill Holdings to Caesars in Multi-Billion Takeover
Published November 27, 2020 by Lee R
The next step in the Caesars-UK takeover is now adaptation to the various relevant presiding regulations.
The acquisition of household UK betting brand William Hill by US-based Caesars is moving forward and taking shape.
The Vote
The latest development has William Hill shareholders approving Caesars Entertainment's takeover bid on Thursday at William Hill headquarters in London.
Shareholder approval for the £2.9 billion takeover bid took place at an historic vote which reunited all WH shareholders at William Hill’s London head office.
The Board of Director had previously agreed to the transaction last October--with William Hill executives originally confirming the takeover last month.
The Tally
The voting turned out 87% in favor of the transaction with a not unsubstantial 13% voting against. These results came from a total votecast of 581,793,399 votes, with 1,229,303 withheld.
The Agreement
The new agreement calls for Caesars to acquire 1.08 billion shares worth £2.72 each.
Caesars CEO Speaks
Caesars Entertainment CEO Tom Reed expressed his organisation's pleasure with the WH shareholder decision. Reed further noted that Caesars and William Hill are looking forward to meeting the remaining regulatory conditions necessary to integrate William Hill US into the expansion of Caesars’ iGaming and sports betting holdings.
Road to Regulation
This regulatory road facing the next phase of the takeover will take place as Caesars takes in a projected $700 million in net revenue for Fiscal Year 2021.
At this rate, completion of the integration should take place some time between the second and third quarters of 2021, with a target date set for the end of March 2021.
At this point in the deal, Caesars still has to gain overseas approval from the UK's Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) back home in the US.
Caesars Breakthrough in Europe
Another major breakthrough affecting the regulatory integration is Austria's recent regulatory approval of Caesars, represeting an early EYU adaption of US-based conglomerate Caesars.
Remaining Affairs at WH
As for William Hill holdings, this just leaves the matter of non-US assets still pending, with offers from several unspecified potential buyers rumoured to be coming in.
Outlook
Thus ends one of the greatest sports betting empires the iGaming industry has seen in its brief history to date—with an even greater one looming if or when Caesars can obtain all approvals.
