GVC threatens to ditch bwin.party bid

A source close to GVC told the Financial Mail that it will increase in cash-and-shares offer for bwin if 888 Holdings raises its own bid.

However, if 888 does not raise its offer but still remains the frontrunner, then GVC might just walk away from the table.

“bwin has played a clever game of poker here by keeping both parties interested,’ said a GVC source. “But we are considering all options, including walking away.”

bwin, which owns multiple gambling brands such as PartyPoker and the World Poker Tour, was put for sale in November.

GVC, which originally partnered with Amaya Gaming on an acquisition bid, and 888, which rejected its own takeover bid by William Hill, decided that bwin was an attractive takeover target.

In July, 888 Holdings’ £900m in cash and stock was announced as the winning bid. Undeterred, GVC kicked Amaya out of the picture and came back several days later with a similar mixture of cash and stock but with new partner Cerberus Capital Management and an extra £100m, boosting its total offer to £1b.

GVC came back a second time, again raising its offer to £1.3b, causing 888′s lenders to reportedly put a hold on a $650m (€585.7m) loan to finance 888’s proposed acquisition.

For the third time, GVC, although unsure whether bwin.party can cancel their transaction with 888, is reportedly preparing to up its bid to £1.1b, which is still short of the 140p per share that bwin investor Jason Ader of SpringOwl had said would give GVC a chance to beat 888.

Analysts expect both companies to increase their bids.