The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) today announced that it has decided not to refer the anticipated merger of Paddy Power plc and Betfair Group Ltd (LON:BET) to a Phase 2 investigation under the provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002, thus giving its consent for the deal to proceed.
Betfair expects that the deal, initially announced in August this year, to complete during the first quarter of 2016. The merger is set to create a new combined entity, named Paddy Power Betfair plc, which is expected to achieve recurring annual pre-tax cost synergies of approximately £50 million.
The proposed deal has yet to secure the approval of Betfair and Paddy Power shareholders. They are set to vote on the merger on December 21, 2015.
To view the official CMA decision on the case, click here.
To view Betfair’s announcement on the clearance of the deal, click here.