The
Gauselmann Group has acquired 100 percent of Marwyn Gaming from MMP, owners of
Praesepe plc, a well-known company in the UK low-stakes gaming industry.
The purchase includes 159 Adult Gaming Centers, nine Bingo Clubs, five
Family Entertainment Centers as well as the Internet business, Beacon Bingo
Online.
A
new company, Merkur Casino UK Ltd, has been formed and will be chaired by
Ulrich Wuseke, CFO of the Gauselmann Group. Praesepe founder Nick Harding will
serve as CEO of the new company.
“We
are very pleased to be able to announce the purchase of Praesepe which has been
completed after a long period of research and negotiations,” Wuseke said. “The
company enjoys a very strong reputation across the markets it serves and offers
good high street coverage throughout Britain. As well as buying the physical
business, which includes of course Europe’s biggest Bingo Club and the
internationally famous Crystal Rooms in London’s Leicester Square, we are also
investing in a progressive philosophy, an energy and an approach to
entertainment retailing which, we believe is unique in the UK.”
“I am delighted that an organization of this caliber has made such an
investment in our business and, for that matter, in UK gaming,” Harding added. “Even
against the backdrop of the double dip recession and the handbrake of limited
investment, my team has registered a series of very significant successes,
which have cemented our position as operators of the most successful gaming
brands on Britain’s high streets. The financial confidence that we now have
will allow us to drive forwards and implement the progressive initiatives which
I believe will transform the sectors that we operate in.”
Gauselmann boosts stake in UK gaming market
October 4, 2012
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