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Industry News: Betfred migrates to Partypoker, Gala Coral - Ladbrokes merger approved

In today's article, we examine the details of Betfred's migration to Partypoker and the approval of the Gala Coral - Ladbrokes merger by the UK Competition and Markets Authority.
author-picture Admin - 2016. June 01.

In today's article, we examine the details of Betfred's migration to Partypoker and the approval of the Gala Coral - Ladbrokes merger by the UK Competition and Markets Authority.

Betfred migrates to Partypoker

Last week we wrote about Partypoker's announcement that the player pool of Betfred will be joining them, but some details were not yet clear. Betfred is currently a member of the iPoker network and their online casino games (and live dealer games) are provided by industry leader Playtech.

According to GVC Holdings (the owners of Partypoker), after Betfred joins Partypoker, players will be able to enjoy all of their services through a new software platform developed by GVC.

 

Players will be able to access all sports and gaming content through one account and the platform will "focus on a superior sports betting player journey".

The exact product offering of the new Betfred will be announced later, currently the company is working together with GVC to find the most ideal products and applications to launch.

GVC has also recently made some technical improvements to the Partypoker casino client and added a new lobby with features like a favorites section that players can customize to their own needs.

After the migration (which will most likely take place after the Euro 2016), Betfred's online casino offering could also benefit from such improvements.

Gala Coral - Ladbrokes merger approved

Last year, we wrote about the $3.4 billion merger between two giants of the UK gambling industry and now the deal has been approved by the UK's competition watchdog, under certain conditions.

At the time of the deal, Gala Coral had 1,845 betting shops and Ladbrokes had 2,100 betting shops, which meant they could easily overtake market leader William Hill, which ran 2,360 betting shops in the UK.

 

According to the deal, Ladbrokes shareholders will hold the majority of the shares in the new company with 51.75% while Gala Coral shareholders hold the remaining 48.25%. One of the reasons the companies decided to merge was the fact that the United Kingdom introduced new taxes for gambling companies in 2014.

Before the merger could be completed, the new company needed the approval of the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which decided to approve the merger if the companies agree to sell between 350-400 of their betting shops.

The CMA said that in 659 local areas the huge number of Ladbrokes and Gala Coral shops could result in a "substantial loss of competition", which could result in worse odds and lower betting limits for players.

Ladbrokes has stated that they are now looking for buyers for their shops so they can move forward with the merger.

Betting companies Betfred and Boylesports have already announced their interest to purchase some of the betting shops so it's very likely that the merger will be completed before the end of the summer.

In addition to their sportsbook activities, Gala Coral also offers casino, bingo and online poker services to players. In June, Rakerace.com players can participate in 2 x $5,000 ($10,000) exclusive cash races at Coral Poker.

Players who register to Coral Poker through Rakerace.com are also automatically put on the highest VIP level, which provides a 30.48% cashback. In addition to the raceback and VIP returns, players can also take advantage of the 100% max £200 first deposit bonus, check out the room review page for more information!

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