Ladbrokes, 888 End Merger Negotiations

In March, it was reported that a possible buyout of online gambling company 888 Holdings by Ladbrokes may be in danger, despite months of talks between the two companies.  Monday, 888, owner of Pacific Poker, confirmed that the deal was off. 

The apparent sticking point was Ladbrokes’ fear that 888 may at some point have legal problems with the U.S. over past trading in that country.  The two sides were trying to work around those concerns, but were not able to come to a satisfactory conclusion. 

888 shares fell 2.5 percent Monday to 117.75p, although they did rebound from an intraday low of 110p.

Originally published 1:35 PM Tuesday, April 24, 2007