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In an exclusive interview with eGaming Review Magazine, Denise Coates, founder of UK-based Bet365.com, reveals that her company will never float the way that rival Betfair has.
“We don’t want to think every day, ‘what does the City think of this’ or ‘I have to do things’, because that’s what the City would like you to do or the City think well or badly of you if you do this or that,” she said. “We don’t want the pressure; we just want to get on with running our business. We don’t need it.
Last month, Betfair made big news when it went public on the London Stock Exchange. The initial public offering was valued at $2.84 billion.
"Betfair could be just what the doctor ordered for the UK's IPO market, which badly needs a dose of confidence," said David Wilkinson, IPO leader at Ernst & Young in the UK. "The pipeline of companies looking to float remains strong, but many UK companies are holding back until volatility reduces and valuations improve. The surge of IPOs everyone is waiting for is unlikely to appear until mid-2011 and 2012."
And Bet365 will not be a part of such a surge, based on Coates statements.
“It was never about an exit”. We like running the business, we like what we do, we enjoy coming to work. We’re going to remain private. I don’t relish the idea [to float].”
Denise started the online arm of her father’s retail shop, which has been in business since 1974.
“The whole excitement of the Internet was not only did it mean you could compete with the main chains, you could actually compete outside the UK. Sports betting just seemed a natural fit to me and I was determined to take the business online,” she said after purchasing the Bet365.com domain name on eBay back in 2000 for a mere £10,000.
Denise Coates added during the interview, which will be published next month: “We’re constantly looking to invest in the products we have, and make sure we have scalability to deal with any legislative changes, and to be bigger and better. You can’t standstill in anything, because everybody else is looking to move on. I’ll still be here in 10 years.”
- Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com
