SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Australia’s biggest gambling operators Tatts Group and Tabcorp have failed to agree terms on a merger which would create a + $9 billion enterprise.
This weekend national news sources reported that a conformation of the merger talks between the two parties was imminent, but almost immediately the deal was dead in the water.
The planned merger would have seen the bigger Brisbane based Tatts Group (market-cap: $5.7 billion) take over Melbourne headquartered Tabcorp (market-cap: 3.7 billion) assets.
The merger would have further seen Tabcorp retail assets in Victoria and New South Wales combined with Tatts Group operations in Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory, with a view to creating a unified bookmaker for the Australian market.
In 2011 both operators had mooted a potential merger, but the discussions had been described as ‘tepid’ and with too many regulatory hurdles for progress.
Under changing Australian market conditions, Tatts and Tabcorp governances appear to be keen to progress discussions of a full takeover.
Furthermore business analysts predict favourable provisions to be set by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC), as the sector has seen a number of heavily backed international operators enter the market in recent years.
