Gala Coral Group has apparently been foundering again or has the speculation just never stopped. I have been writing about online bingo for quite a few years, not quite since the start of the industry, but certainly long enough to have a considered opinion on what is happening in it. I remember 4 years ago when Gala was “foundering” financially and US giants Harrahs, made a bid for shares in the company. Fortunately the business brains at Gala managed to stave off any hostile takeover by this US gambling giant, sold a small share block to and Asian Company and managed to retain control over the majority of shareholdings.
I am not sure if the latest Gala Coral foundering news is real, or a case of everything is available at the “right price” kind of scenario. But whatever it is, it looks like another US company is trying to get a slice of the lucrative UK bingo/gaming industry through a cash injection into Gala Coral for 40 – 60% of the shares.
As far as I am concerned I am very supportive of the UK online bingo industry and the US UIGEA did a lot of this damage to this industry, I say don’t let the yanks get a share. Gala, offer it to anyone else but them if you really need the money. If we are unable to conduct ethical gaming business in their country, why should they have that right in ours. UIGEA has already been determined as being contrary to the tenets of free trade.
Now that I have finished my soap box tirade, it is Blackstone who is offering a bid of £300m for 40 – 60% of the shares; that is absolute madness, they would have controlling shares! They are a private equity firm and they are also currently conducting a due diligence on Gala Affairs. If this bid is accepted, it is going to cause a hornets nest with junior lenders. But I suppose we have to wait it out and see what happens. I believe Gala has reached critical mass and this is the problem – nowhere new to expand.
I wish Cashcade would make them an offer, and have done with it they have done damn well with online bingo, just take a look at Foxy and Think Bingo for examples of how bingo sh
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