Equity firm’s gamble 
on Betfair called off 
after offers snubbed

BID interest in gambling group Betfair ended yesterday after a consortium failed to tempt the company’s board with two improved offers.

The final proposal from the group, led by private equity firm CVC, valued Betfair at £980m, an increase of eight per cent on its first approach in April.

Under the chairmanship of former Railtrack boss Gerald Corbett, Betfair’s board rejected CVC’s “full and final offer” on valuation grounds and said it was making “excellent progress” under new chief executive Breon Corcoran.

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He added: “The board remains confident in the continued delivery of this strategy and the company’s outlook and growth prospects.”

CVC confirmed that its interest in Betfair was now at an end after Monday night’s passing of a Takeover Panel deadline for it to table a formal offer.

Its opening approach in April valued the company at 880p a share, equivalent to £910m, and well below Betfair’s stock market debut of 1300p in 2010.

A revised proposal worth 920p was tabled on Friday evening before CVC increased the stakes with 950p a share on Sunday evening – the day before the Takeover Panel’s “put up or shut up” deadline for the talks to complete.

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CVC’s interest in Betfair was in conjunction with other investors, including existing Betfair shareholder and entrepreneur Richard Koch.

Betfair’s betting exchange works by matching punters and allowing them to bet against each other.

The company says that this eliminates the need for a traditional bookmaker. It charges a commission on the bets and processes seven million transactions a day.

CVC owns luggage firm Samsonite and also has stakes in Brit Insurance and theme park giant Merlin Entertainments.