Reuters a day ahead as UK closes books on Tote sale

Reuters left news agency rivals trailing on June 2 with news that Betfred’s $400 million cash offer for the Tote had secured Britain’s state-owned bookmaker following a hotly-contested auction that had divided a powerful horse-racing lobby. Citing sources close to the sale process, Reuters reported the sale a day before its announcement, leaving Dow Jones to cite a BBC report the following morning and Bloomberg to match the story some nine and half hours after the Reuters article. It followed a scoop two weeks earlier when Reuters revealed rival bidder Martin Broughton planned to finance any deal by floating the business – subsequently seen as the key flaw in his plan. Evolution analyst James Hollins said the high valuation put on the Tote highlighted the appeal of the betting industry to investors at a time of economic uncertainty although analysts also noted that the deal created a much bigger rival to Britain’s two biggest listed players whose shares fell on the day. For the government it was the first in a string of planned asset sales designed to help plug big holes in its finances.