Rank And 888 Submit Offer For William Hill

Casino giant Rank and online operator 888 have made a formal £3.6bn offer for a three-way merger with the high street bookmaker William Hill (Other OTC: WIMHF - news) .

The offer is understood to be 346p a share which will rise to 408p when taking into account efficiencies and synergy savings.

William Hill's board are reviewing the offer, before a formal response is released to the stock market.

At the time it was approached , the bookmaker announced it would consider any forthcoming proposal, but it remained cautious.

It stated that it was "not clear that a combination of William Hill with 888 and Rank will enhance William Hill's strategic positioning or deliver superior value to William Hill's strategy which is focused on increasing the group's diversification by growing its digital and international businesses".

William Hill shares were at 324.9p in early trading, down 0.8%.

If it does agree a merger, it will bring the UK's largest retail bookmaker in line with rivals who have already consolidated.

Last year Betfair and Paddy Power (EUREX: 27913021.EX - news) merged, and Ladbrokes (LSE: LAD.L - news) and Gala Coral are also joining forces, in the face of a difficult market.