Ladbrokes merges with Coral

In a deal with an expected value of £2.3 billion, bookmaker Ladbrokes has announced that it will merge with smaller competitor Gala Coral. This will take Ladbrokes past the current high street leader William Hill, taking the new combined company's total presence to 3945 shops (2100 Labrokes' and 1854 Coral's).

To fund the deal Ladbrokes will offer 93 million new shares to investors, representing 10% of the company.

Gala Coral has previously been owned by a string of private equity firms, including Park Square Capital since 2010. This deal involves private equity investors getting 48.25% of the new combined company’s shares.