888 Holdings - comment

Synergies continue to come through from the 888 and William Hill merger, which is improving EBITDA and reducing leverage to 5.1x. Guidance for FY23 is still for <5.0x mainly driven by expanding EBITDA rather than cash deleveraging. However, the Company did not guide the review by the Gambling Commission, specifically about the new shareholder FS Gaming Investment who holds a 7% stake. This broadly relates to a bribery investigation by the UK authority concerning GVCs selling an operation in Turkey and the backers of FS Gaming Investment who held active management positions when GVC sold the business. 

Operationally, the business is on a strong trajectory with continuous deleveraging expected over the coming quarters. An update from the Gambling Commission is expected in late September/early October but with no precedent in the UK market, it may drag out.