GVC Holdings ups bwin.party takeover bid to £1 billion

Following last week’s announcement that it would consider its options regarding its acquisition bid for bwin.party entertainment, GVC Holdings has tabled a £1 billion takeover offer to snatch the operator from 888 Holdings.

Having ended its bwin.party special purpose acquisition vehicle with Toronto Listed Amaya Inc which offered an initial£908 million for the operator. GVC has secured deal funding for its bid from US private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management.

GVC has secured the funds via a combination of issuance of new GVC shares, to bwin.Party shareholders, and a €400m senior secured loan.

The upped £1 billion takeover bid, would entitle bwin.party shareholders to a 122.5p per share offer, furthermore shareholders could claim up to 25p per share in cash.

Last week bwin.party governance stated that it would work with 888 Holdings to deliver its takeover to company shareholders. However the operator governance would remain open to hearing new offers it they were deemed “deliverable”

“The board has recommended an offer from 888 and we are working towards getting that done,” a bwin.party statement said. “Should GVC or anyone else put forward an attractive, fully financed and deliverable offer then of course the board will consider it against 888’s current offer.”