Betfair to go public?

Will online gambling giant go public within the next two weeks?

The UK newspaper The Sunday Times has reignited rumours that online gambling giant Betfair is about to go public, reporting that the group is to announce a GBP1.5 billion public offering within the next two weeks.

If true, this would make the flotation one of the largest in Britain this year.

The exact price of shares is apparently yet to be determined, but Japanese technology investor Softbank paid GBP355 million for a 23 percent stake in 2003, from which the estimated value of GBP1.5 billion is derived by the newspaper.

Founders Ed Wray and Andrew Black would be the largest beneficiaries of the float; they own a combined stake of 25 percent of the company.

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