FS Gaming Investments has relinquished circa 2% of the 6.57% stake & voting rights it had in 888 Holdings – which it only acquired in June – after its deal with Shay Segev was cancelled.
The circa 2% that FS has relinquished is largely down to HMRC’s investigation of Kenny Alexander and Lee Feldman’s deals when the pair worked at Entain – known then as GVC.
The investigation by HMRC in the US was focused on Entain’s former Turkish-facing business and the company also acknowledged historical misconduct involving former third-party suppliers and former employees having occurred. Entain was being investigated for offences that include, but are not limited to, section 7 of the Bribery Act 2010.
In its Q2 report, Entain revealed that it had put £585m ($746.3m) aside to settle the affair with HMRC, with Entain’s current Chairman, Barry Gibson, stating: “The Entain of today bears no resemblance to the GVC of yesterday, which had a different management team, a different strategy and – to be blunt – different standards.”
When the HMRC investigation was announced, 888 paused proceedings on FS taking a 6% stake in it – which would have seen Feldman, Alexander and Stephen Morana become the Chair, CEO and CFO of 888, respectively – before terminating the discussions entirely.
Now, FS Gaming has reduced the 6.57% stake it had in 888 to 4.55%, a move seen by many as a direct reaction to 888’s decision to halt FS Gaming’s 6% investment offer in July.
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