Ladbroke rivals fight bid
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.RIVALS of Ladbroke have launched an attack on the leisure group's bid to buy the Coral betting chain in an attempt to persuade the Monopolies and Mergers Commission to block the deal.
William Hill, the betting chain owned by Nomura and an arch competitor of Ladbroke, is understood to have lobbied the MMC hard to force the combined group to dispose of betting shops or rule out the merger entirely.
Ladbroke presented its own case for the acquisition of Coral to the MMC yesterday. It is believed to have claimed that it will not have a monopoly in the betting industry because the market is a local one and it has already disposed of outlets within a quarter of a mile of each other.
But other betting groups maintain that the deal will create a dominant force in the off-course betting industry with a market share of more than 39 per cent.
Analysts believe that Ladbroke is likely to have to make more disposals to get the green light for the deal.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments