Mergers and takeovers have been all the rage recently within the iGaming industry, increased taxes and regulations have led to the likes of Ladbrokes and Gala Coral to combine their efforts.However, standing stoically alone is William Hill, who despite drops in profits, are clearly not willing to commit to anything they are not sure of. This has been evident again as Hill have turned down a takeover bid from Rank Group and 888.The bid valued William Hill at around £3.6 billion, but was, again, not good enough to tempt the bookmakers into making a deal.
The offer
In a statement, William Hill explained that the suggested deal was an inter-conditional, all share merger of Rank and 888, with 888 acting as the entity that would acquire William Hill, to create BidCo, which would then buy the bookmakers for cash and shares in BidCo.Hill explained that the proposed deal represented 364p a share based on the closing price of Rank and 888 on August 5th, this translated to a premium of 11% per share on the Hill share price of 327p on August 8th. 
Unanimously rejected
William Hill explained that they perceived the deal to be a “substantial risk” to shareholders of what it considers to be a “complicated three-way combination”.The company added:“Having reviewed the proposal with its financial advisers, Citi and Barclays, the board of William Hill has unanimously rejected the proposal as it substantially undervalues William Hill.“In addition, the board of William Hill does not believe that a combination of William Hill with 888 and Rank will enhance William Hill’s strategic positioning or deliver superior value for shareholders compared against William Hill’s strategy, which is focused on increasing the group’s diversification by growing its digital and international businesses.”