Member Article

Gala Bingo chain acquired in £240m deal

Following a string of acquisitions across the gambling sector, the Gala bingo chain has accepted an acquisition offer from a British investment trust.

Caledonia Investments is expected to announce today that it has agreed to buy the bingo business from Gala Coral in a £240m deal.

The deal will see Caledonia take ownership of more than 130 bingo clubs and a market share of more than 30%.

Gala has seen major investor interest in recent months from several big players including German gambling operator Gauselmann Group, as well as private equity firms Bridgepoint, Rish Capital Partners and OPCapita.

The acquisition comes as Gala Coral progresses plans to merge with Ladbrokes, its main industry rival.

Commenting on the acquisition, Duncan Johnson, Caledonia’s Head of Unquoted Investments, said: “Gala Bingo is well known to Caledonia’s Unquoted Investments team and we are delighted to be backing Simon Wykes and his team in the next chapter of its history. Its defensive, enduring business model, which delivers strong cash generation and dividend yield, fit ideally with the investment criteria sought by Caledonia for its unquoted portfolio and complements our other assets in the Unquoted pool. As with our other unquoted investments, Gala Bingo will pay an attractive yield from inception.” Simon Wykes, Gala Bingo’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “We are delighted to have secured Caledonia’s backing in the next phase of Gala Bingo’s development. We believe that Caledonia’s longer term, supportive investment model will give Gala Bingo the stable platform from which we can continue to develop our market leading business.”

Paddy Power and Betfair have also announced their intention to merge earlier this year.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ellen Forster .