The CMA granted “unconditional phase one clearance” to the proposal, which would see Flutter acquire all of the shares in TSG and join together to create a combined business with annual revenue of £3.8bn.
The £10bn merger was the subject of a CMA probe at the start of February, but the findings were that intense competition for customers from major rivals including William Hill and Bet365 would mean that they would not be disadvantaged in terms of receiving less favourable gaming conditions.
The Stars Group owns Sky Betting and Gaming, while Flutter is the owner of Paddy Power.
The aim is that the merger can now be completed in the second quarter of this year, with projected synergies worth £140m.
Flutter’s chief executive Peter Jackson said: "This morning's announcement from the CMA marks a further important milestone in the process towards completion of our proposed combination with The Stars Group.”
“We continue to work with the remaining international regulatory authorities to obtain the last of the outstanding approvals. Separately, last week we published the necessary documentation ahead of the shareholder votes in April and we continue to make good progress in our post-completion planning,” he added.
Flutter and TSG last week also announced that they had come to an agreement as to who will serve as directors at Flutter. Divyesh Gadhia, currently the executive chairman of TSG, will become deputy chair of the group, following completion of the merger.
TSG chief executive Rafi Ashkenazi will act as a consultant to Flutter and join the board in a non-executive capacity rather than taking up an operational role, while Richard Flint, Alfred Hurley Jr, David Lazzarato and Mary Turner will also become directors.
Source: GMB
