Rishabh pant date of birth

William Hill (bookmaker)

Bookmakers in the United Kingdom

William Hill is a British gambling company founded in Its product offering includes sports betting, online casino, online poker, and online bingo. Business operations are led from its headquarters in London, with a satellite office in Malta.

The company was previously listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was acquired by Caesars Entertainment in April In July , William Hill was subsequently bought by Holdings for £ billion.

History

The company was founded by William Hill in [2] It changed hands many times, being acquired by Sears Holdings in ,[3] then by Grand Metropolitan in , then by Brent Walker in [4] In September , Brent Walker recouped £m of the £m it had paid for William Hill when Grand Metropolitan was found to have exaggerated the company's profits at the time of the sale.[5]

Japanese investment bankNomura mounted a £m leveraged buyout of William Hill in [6] In February , a proposed stock market flotation was abandoned due to "weak interest"[7] and Nomura sold the company to funds managed by private equity firmsCinven and CVC Capital Partners for £m instead.[2]

The company was eventually listed on the London Stock Exchange in [2] The following year chief executive David Harding was awarded a £m bonus, making him the UK's fifth highest paid company director in [8] It acquired Sunderland Greyhound Stadium in and Newcastle Greyhound Stadium in [2] In June Harding sold £m of shares to fund his divorce, precipitating a decline in the company's stock that wiped £75 million off the value of the company.[9][10] In , William Hill bought betting offices in the UK, Republic of Ireland, Isle of Man and Jersey from Stanley Leisure for £ million: the acquisition briefly took the company past Ladbrokes into first position in the UK betting market[11] in terms of shops but not revenue.

The Office of Fair Trading made William Hill sell 78 of the Stanley shops due to concerns over anti-competitive practices.[12]

In November , William Hill went into partnership with Orbis (latterly OpenBet), and Israeli software company Playtech, to remedy its own failing online operation.[13][14] The same month, analysts at UBS noted "concern" at the company's level of debt,[15] which stood at over £1 billion[16] and was later reported as £ billion.[17] In , the company enacted both a rights issue and a corporate bond issue, in an effort to restructure its debt.[16]

From until , William Hill paid George Howarth, a Member of Parliament, £30, to act as a parliamentary adviser.

While on William Hill's payroll he tabled amendments to the budget proposing tougher levels of taxation for person-to-person betting exchanges.[18][19] Howarth left the role in the wake of the expenses scandal.[20]

Under the terms of the deal, William Hill paid Playtech's founder Teddy Sagi £ million for various assets and affiliate companies.[21][22] These included several online casino sites which William Hill continues to run under the name WHG.

Playtech took a 29% stake in the new William Hill Online entity.[14] The company wrote-off a reported £26m when scrapping its previous in-house system.[23] In June William Hill backed Playtech despite its partner having a quarter of its stock market value wiped out following a profits warning.[24]

In , William Hill paid £ million ($ million) for full control of its online business marking an accelerated expansion and resulted in the dissolution of the partnership with Playtech.[25] In May , William Hill presented prototype of "Get In The Race" – a virtual horse racing application.[26] On 2 August , it acquired Grand Parade, the betting and gaming digital solutions company for £ million in cash and shares.[27]

In , William Hill was fined £ million by the Gambling Commission for systematic failures regarding anti-money laundering and problem gambling.

  • The operator was found to have accepted large deposits of cash linked to criminal activity between and , resulting in £ million in financial gains. William Hill was ordered to return the £ million profit, plus pay a penalty of £5 million for breaching regulations.[28]

    On 7 January , William Hill received regulatory approval to conclude its purchase of Mr Green for £ million.[29] On 17 July , William Hill raised £ million in a new ordinary share rights issue to provide a timely capital boost during the COVID pandemic.[30] In August , as a result of the economic effects caused by the COVID pandemic, the company announced that it would close shops permanently.

    Despite that, only 16 employees would lose their job positions, while the others would be assigned to new positions. It also announced that the firm would be merging its retail and online operations.[31]

    On 30 September , William Hill agreed to a £ billion takeover bid by Caesars Entertainment, the Nevada-based casino operator.

    The deal was unanimously recommended by the UK company's directors. It came after two rival bids by the US private equity group Apollo were turned down.[32][33] In April , Caesars completed its acquisition of William Hill and the company was delisted from the London Stock Exchange.[34][35]

    As Caesars was interested only in William Hill's industry expertise and its US operations, the European business was put up for sale, attracting bids from Holdings, Apollo, and CVC.[36] In September , Caesars agreed to sell the European business to Holdings for £ billion.[36][37] However, in July , reduced its offer to £ billion and this was accepted.[38] The sale was completed in July [39]

    On 28 March , the UK Gambling Commission ordered three William Hill Group companies - WHG (International) Limited, Mr Green Limited, and William Hill Organization Limited - to pay a record £ million for social responsibility and anti-money laundering failures.

    Commenting on the penalty package, Andrew Rhodes, Gambling Commission chief executive, said: "When we launched this investigation the failings we uncovered were so widespread and alarming serious consideration was given to licence suspension. However, because the operator immediately recognised their failings and worked with us to swiftly implement improvements, we instead opted for the largest enforcement payment in our history."[40]

    UK operations

    William Hill employs approximately 12, people, 8, of them in the UK.[41] The company operates 1, betting shops.[42][43] In addition to its online sportsbook operations, the company offers online casino games, skill games, online bingo and online poker.

    Since the Gambling Act ,[44]gaming machines have strengthened profits to counteract falling revenues in other areas.[45][46] In , the company moved its online betting operations to Gibraltar to reduce its taxes by millions of pounds.[47]

    In August , William Hill launched a training programme for its 10,+ workforce to combat underage gambling in its retail outlets.[48]

    In , William Hill became a founding member of the Betting and Gaming Council.[49] In July , William Hill announced it was closing betting shops, saying this was because of the decision three months before to reduce the maximum stake on fixed-odds betting terminals to £2.[50] In August , the company said it would close a further shops that were not profitable during the COVID pandemic.

    At the same time, the company returned £ million in furlough funds it had received from the government.[51]

    The company confirmed in that UK operations will continue to be managed from Gibraltar.[52]

    In March , William Hill closed 14 of its shops in the Republic of Ireland with the loss of 53 jobs.[53] In February it announced that the remaining 36 Irish shops were "under review"[54] pending the possible introduction of controversial gaming machines to Irish shops.[44] In , William Hill sold its remaining betting shops in Ireland to BoyleSports because of what a William Hill employee described as "the restrictive nature" of the laws governing retail betting in Ireland.[55]

    William Hill had pulled out of Italy in after just two years, a failure which cost the company £1m in wasted investment.[56] The company's joint venture in Spain ended in January with partners Codere buying William Hill's 50% stakeholding for €1,[57] after both parties had invested an initial €10 million in April [58] William Hill lost £m in and £m in on the venture.[59]

    In June , William Hill expanded to Nevada, the only U.S.

    state that then allowed full-fledged sports wagering,[60] buying three chains of sportsbooks: Lucky's, Leroy's, and the satellite operations of Club Cal Neva, for a total of $53 million.[61] The deals at the time gave the company control of 55 per cent of the state's sportsbook locations, and 11 per cent of statewide book revenue.[60] All three chains were to be rebranded under the William Hill name.[61]

    In , three Australian brands, Sportingbet, Centrebet and Tom Waterhouse, were purchased by the company[62] and later rebranded as William Hill Australia in Both Sportingbet and Centrebet were acquired in March of the year for $m and $m, respectively, while was brought in during August , for an initial $34m.[63]Tom Waterhouse was appointed chief executive officer of William Hill Australia in July [64]

    In March , William Hill sanctioned the sale of its Australian business to CrownBet holdings for an estimated value of AU $ million.

    The sale ended the company's time in Australia after entering the market in [65] In preparation for Brexit, in June , William Hill announced that it is opening a new satellite office in Malta.[52]

    Following the decision of the US Supreme Court regarding the case of Murphy v.

    National Collegiate Athletic Association in June , the state of New Jersey effectively legalised gambling on athletic events due to a previously successful state ballot initiative. William Hill entered arrangements to provide bookmaking services to both Monmouth Park Racetrack and Ocean Resort Casino in the state of New Jersey.[66]

    On 3 August , the bookmaker opened the first full-service betting operation housing professional sports teams in the U.S.

    at Capitol One Arena in Washington D.C.[67]

    In January , a joint venture between William Hill and Argenbingo received a licence to offer online gambling services in the Argentinean province of Buenos Aires.[68] On 5 May , William Hill launched in Colombia following the acquisition of a majority stake in Alfabet.[69]

    In , William Hill threatened to withdraw its sponsorship of various horse races, in its dispute with racecourses over TurfTV.[70] William Hill, which had been the strongest critic of TurfTV, was later forced into a humiliating climbdown and subscribed to the channel in January [71]

    Away from horse racing, William Hill has sponsored many other sporting events, including the Scottish Cup from to ,[72] the PDC World Darts Championship from to and the Scottish Professional Football League since [73] The company also sponsors the annual William Hill Sports Book of the Year award, dedicated to rewarding excellence in sports writing.[74]

    Advertising

    In May , The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) banned William Hill from running a television advert which it found "condoned gambling behaviour that was socially irresponsible".[75] In October , the ASA banned a poster and national press advertisement which promised "£ of free bets".

    The ad was found to be "likely to mislead" and in breach of a Committee of Advertising Practice code relating to "truthfulness".[76]

    In March , an advert stating "William Hill best prices fact" was banned by the ASA. It had breached several Committee of Advertising Practice codes, including those relating to "substantiation", "truthfulness" and "honesty".[77] In September , William Hill made a television advert featuring the single "A Bit Patchy".[78] In December , adverts stating "Best Prices on the Best Horses" and "Best Prices on the Best Teams" were banned by the ASA.

    It had breached several Committee of Advertising Practice code, including those relating to "misleading advertising", "Substantiation" and "Comparisons". The ASA also banned a different advert claiming "Best Odds Guaranteed" because it was misleading.[79]

    In June , William Hill launched its new master brand.

    As part of the relaunch, the company launched a new TV advert featuring its brand ambassadors Tony McCoy, Robbie Savage, Rio Ferdinand and Jermaine Jenas and used the Neil Diamond song Sweet Caroline.[80]

    Criticism

    Scientific papers dealing with the statistics of sports betting mention that William Hill blocks customers or limits their stakes if William Hill gets the impression that they may try to benefit from arbitrage.[81][82]

    See also

    References

    1. ^"William Hill today".

      William Hill. Retrieved 3 March

    2. ^ abcd"William Hill: History". Archived from the original on 18 July
    3. ^Davenport-Hines, Richard (23 September ). "Clore, Sir Charles (–), businessman".

      Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online&#;ed.). Oxford University Press. doi/ref:odnb/ ISBN&#;. Retrieved 1 December (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

    4. ^Stan, Hey (4 April ). "Our national love affair: a history of the betting shop". The Independent. Retrieved 1 December
    5. ^"BRENT WALKER RECOUPS POUNDS M FROM BETTING STAKE OF SEVEN YEARS AGO", The Observer, London, 29 September
    6. ^"Nomura to Buy William Hill, U.K.'s 2nd-Largest Bookmaker".

      Wall Street Journal. 12 October ISSN&#; Retrieved 1 December

    7. ^"BOOKIE CITY PLAN FALLS AT FINAL HURDLE", Sunday Mirror, London, 21 February
    8. ^Business & Media: Business: Top 10 highest paid directors, The Observer, London, 1 February
    9. ^Milner, Mark (6 July ).

      "Wm Hill defends statement timing as shares fall again". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 December

    10. ^Mesure, Susie (10 June ). "William Hill chief blames divorce for £5m stake sale that knocks". The Independent. Retrieved 4 December
    11. ^"William Hill buys Stanley shops".

      BBC News. 16 May Retrieved 4 December

    12. ^Wallop, Harry (3 August ). "William Hill ordered to sell 78 shops". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 12 April
    13. ^Lea, Robert (12 April ). "Casino machines save Hill after web bets flop". Evening Standard.

      Retrieved 5 December

    14. ^ abThompson, James (20 October ).

      Rishabh pant cast hindi: And not just on holiday either - he was stationed in the Cork town in as a Black and Tan. Born in Birmingham in , Hill enlisted underage after leaving school at 12 and spending a number of years working as an apprentice at a motorcycle firm.

      "William Hill in deal with Playtech to expand online gaming operation". The Independent. Retrieved 5 December

    15. ^Fletcher, Nick (20 November ). "Investors bet on bookies, but bad debt worries hit IG". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 12 April
    16. ^ abHarrington, Ben (5 November ).

      "William Hill to launch £m high yield bond". The Daily Telegraph. London.

      Rishabh kant biography of william hill For many this is the first name in gambling: Growing up in the days before the arrival of the Internet, William Hill betting shops were prevalent on British High Streets and those of a certain age who still like to bet online would have almost certainly used one of their shops at some point. The company was founded in by a Mr William Hill himself and in the days before the industry was fully legalised, the official history states that it was set up as a telephone and postal service only and certainly that would have been a main focus of the operation at that time. William Hill, like many of his contemporaries, started out in bookmaking at a young age and while working as an apprentice at the BSA motorcycle factory during World War I, he would drive around and collect bets on his bike. Once the war had ended, Hill began to take his bookmaking activities more seriously. He set up at race courses but at that point he was some way out of his depth — taking on professional punters and losing a ton of money!

      Retrieved 12 April

    17. ^William Hill; INSIDE THE CITY, The Sunday Times, London, 2 August
    18. ^"MP acting as bookies' lackey is a disgrace", The Telegraph, London, 19 May
    19. ^"MP ACCUSED ON BET LAWS", Daily Echo, Liverpool, 26 May
    20. ^"MP quits bookmaker job ahead of crackdown; Private earnings under spotlight", Daily Post, Liverpool, 29 June
    21. ^"Match of the day latest".

      Football and other sports. Retrieved 19 March

    22. ^"Interview: Henry Birch, William Hill Online". eGaming Review. Archived from the original on 11 June Retrieved 14 April
    23. ^Bowers, Simon (11 January ). "William Hill to buy in technical experts to save internet arm". The Guardian.

      London. Retrieved 12 April

    24. ^King, Ian (21 July ). "William Hill reassures after Playtech warning". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 12 June Retrieved 12 April
    25. ^"William Hill buys out partner Playtech". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 11 December Retrieved 12 November
    26. ^"William Hill Debuts Google Cardboard Horse Racing App".

      Casino News Daily. 11 May Retrieved 4 December

    27. ^"Regulatory news". William Hill Plc. Retrieved 14 June
    28. ^"William Hill fined £m by Gambling Commission". The Guardian. 20 February Retrieved 21 February
    29. ^"William Hill gains regulatory approval for MRG acquisition".

      I Gaming Business. London. 7 January Retrieved 12 April

    30. ^"William Hill reveals Covid revenue impact amid £m share capital issue boost". I Gaming Business. London. 17 July Retrieved 17 July
    31. ^Hancock, Alice (5 August ). "William Hill shuts another stores as more punters shift online".

      Financial Times.

      This document maintained by GGGeditor. Main Menu. This Week. William Hill b. William ran away from school at the age of 12 to work on an uncle's farm.

      Archived from the original on 11 December Retrieved 5 August

    32. ^"Caesars owner strikes £bn William Hill deal". BBC News. 30 September Retrieved 30 September
    33. ^Jolly, Jasper (30 September ). "US casino operator Caesars agrees £bn William Hill takeover".

      The Guardian. ISSN&#; Retrieved 30 September

    34. ^"Caesars Entertainment Announces Completion of William Hill PLC Acquisition". MarketWatch (Press release). 22 April
    35. ^"William Hill: Delisting and Cancellation of Shares". London Stock Exchange. 23 April Retrieved 22 April
    36. ^ abRob Davies (9 September ).

      "Gambling firm buys William Hill International in £bn deal". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 18 January

    37. ^Colton Lochhead (9 September ). "Caesars selling William Hill non-U.S.

    38. Rishabh pant birth place
    39. Rishabh pant wife
    40. Did rishabh pant go to college
    41. Rishabh pant father passed away
    42. Rishabh pant father occupation

      43. assets in $3B deal". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 25 September

    43. ^" cuts price of William Hill takeover by £ million". Evening Standard. Retrieved 18 January
    44. ^Bill Barber (1 July ). " completes £2bn William Hill acquisition to form 'powerful' global business".

      Racing Post. Retrieved 18 January

    45. ^"William Hill Group businesses to pay record £m for failures". Gambling Commission. 28 March Retrieved 28 March
    46. ^" pays £bn for William Hill's non-US assets including UK betting shops". Sky News. Retrieved 4 December
    47. ^"William Hill betting shops locator".

      Retrieved 25 April

    48. ^Anton, Peter. "William Hill Betting Partner". Retrieved 8 November
    49. ^ abLister, Sam (7 February ). "High-stakes gambling machines causing serious addiction". The Times. London. Retrieved 13 April [dead link&#;]
    50. ^William Hill 'satisfied' with business, Yorkshire Post, Leeds, 24 April
    51. ^Sibun, Jonathan (28 February ).

      "William Hill unfazed by gaming review". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 13 April

    52. ^Goodman, Matthew (2 August ). "William Hill set to move internet betting to Gibraltar". The Times. ISSN&#; Retrieved 4 December
    53. ^"Staff at William Hill train to avert underage gambling".

      Archived from the original on 14 August Retrieved 22 October

    54. ^"BGC Members". BGC. London. Retrieved 1 August
    55. ^"William Hill plans store closures putting 4, jobs at risk". BBC News. 4 July Retrieved 5 December
    56. ^Barber, Bill (5 August ).

      "William Hill to close shops but will repay £m furlough funds". Racing Post. Retrieved 5 December

    57. ^ ab"Ulrik Bengtsson confirms William Hill's Malta opening". SBC News. 4 June Retrieved 6 January
    58. ^"William Hill to close 14 betting shops in Republic".

      Irish Times. 2 February Retrieved 14 April

    59. ^"William Hill waits for details on State's gambling reform". Irish Times. 2 February Retrieved 14 April
    60. ^"Boylesports buys 15 William Hill shops". RTE. 3 November Retrieved 6 January
    61. ^"Italian gamble a loser for Hills".

      London Evening Standard. Retrieved 12 April

    62. ^"Sale of Spain joint venture". William Hill. Archived from the original on 18 July Retrieved 14 April
    63. ^"William Hill PLC – Re Joint Venture". William Hill. Archived from the original on 18 July Retrieved 14 April
    64. ^"Annual Online Report"(PDF).

      William Hill. Archived from the original(PDF) on 26 August Retrieved 21 April

    65. ^ abVelotta, Richard N. (21 June ). "British oddsmaker William Hill gets OK to operate books in Nevada". Vegas Inc. Retrieved 28 June
    66. ^ abGreen, Steve (28 June ).

      "William Hill, Affinity in long-term sports betting deal". Vegas Inc. Retrieved 28 June

    67. ^"William Hill: Acquisition".

      William Hill is a British gambling company founded in Its product offering includes sports betting , online casino , online poker , and online bingo. Business operations are led from its headquarters in London , with a satellite office in Malta. The company was previously listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was acquired by Caesars Entertainment in April The company was founded by William Hill in

      Archived from the original on 12 July Retrieved 9 July

    68. ^"Brands axed as William Hill launches in Australia". AdNews.
    69. ^William Hill: Tom WaterhouseArchived 10 July at the Wayback Machine
    70. ^"William Hill sells Australian business to CrownBet". 6 March Retrieved 8 March
    71. ^"William Hill opens New Jersey's First Sports Book".

      National Football Post. 14 June Retrieved 9 January

    72. ^"Capital One Arena sets sports betting precedent by opening in-venue sportsbook". SportBusiness. 2 August Retrieved 14 August
    73. ^"William Hill waits for details on State's gambling reform". Info Play. 3 January Retrieved 4 January
    74. ^"William Hill launches in Colombia following Alfabet acquisition".

      IGaming Business. 25 May Retrieved 25 May

    75. ^Paley, Tony (26 March ). "Bookmakers threaten sponsorship cuts as betting shop row escalates".

      Biography of william shakespeare Born in Birmingham , Hill left school at the age of twelve to work on his uncle's farm. After the hopeless failure of his first foray into bookmaking, he moved to London in where he started taking bets on greyhounds before opening an illicit gambling den in Jermyn Street in In he produced the first fixed-odds football coupon. Although he had called legal betting offices "a cancer on society", he opened his first in , [ 5 ] after his competitors had stolen a march on him. He was also interested in breeding horses and in bought a stud at Whitsbury in Hampshire.

      The Guardian. London. Retrieved 14 June

    76. ^"William Hill deal with TurfTV a case of history repeating as punter power wins day". The Scotsman. Retrieved 14 June
    77. ^"The reason William Hill are ending their Scottish Cup sponsorship revealed as SFA line up new backer". daily Record.

      21 February Retrieved 21 February

    78. ^"William Hill and SPFL agree landmark title sponsorship deal | SPFL". . Retrieved 8 June
    79. ^"Sports Book Of The Year ". William Hill. Retrieved 7 June
    80. ^"ASA Adjudication on William Hill (Gibraltar) Ltd".

      ASA. Archived from the original on 9 January Retrieved 13 April

    81. ^"ASA Adjudication on William Hill Organisation Ltd". ASA. Archived from the original on 8 January Retrieved 13 April
    82. ^"ASA Adjudication on William Hill Organisation Ltd". ASA. Archived from the original on 23 March Retrieved 13 April
    83. ^William Hill Football betting New Season TV Advert / , archived from the original on 11 December , retrieved 15 December
    84. ^"ASA Adjudication on William Hill Organisation Ltd".

      ASA. Retrieved 5 January

    85. ^"William Hill celebrates passion for sport with new campaign". . Retrieved 10 June
    86. ^Franck, Egon; Verbeek, Erwin; Nüesch, Stephan (). "Inter-market Arbitrage in Betting". Economica. 80 (): – doi/ecca ISSN&#;
    87. ^Schwartz, Avery Joseph ().

      "Arbitrage in the European Soccer Betting Market"(PDF). New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University.

    External links