McGowan cans WA TAB sale process

The West Australian government said it could not reach terms for a deal that were ‘consistent’ with its objectives.

Mark McGowan said he was pulling the process despite the time that it had taken. Picture: Matt Jelonek/Getty Images

The West Australian government has terminated the market process for the sale of the state’s TAB after Matthew Tripp-led Betr withdrew its bid late last month.

In a statement late on Monday, the government said it would retain ownership of WA TAB and it would continue to be operated by Racing and Wagering Western Australia.

It had become clear that agreement could not be reached on terms that were “consistent with the government’s objectives,” the statement reads.

Betr, the preferred bidder, “ultimately failed to confirm the necessary financial commitments to support its offer,” it added. Two other interested parties, Tabcorp and Entain, which owns the Ladbrokes brand, were not expected to have increased their offers.

The Australian first revealed Betr had pulled its offer on October 24. At the time, sources indicated Betr had a late dispute with the government regarding the use of the TAB brand in the state, and the legal and marketing implications of doing so without Tabcorp’s permission. Tabcorp owns and operates the TAB brand in the remainder of Australia.

Betr is backed by an ownership group including News Corp Australia – publisher of The Australian – and Las Vegas-based Tekkorp Capital, owned by Australian wagering entrepreneur Matt Davey. Betr’s technology is supplied by Betmakers Technology.

“Significant time and effort have been committed in an attempt to deliver an outcome that balances the long-term interests of both the state and local racing industry – despite exhaustive efforts a balanced outcome cannot be achieved,” said WA Premier Mark McGowan.

“Following the detailed assessment and process, the responsible and prudent decision, which is in the interests of Western Australians, is for the state to retain ownership of the WA TAB.

“We always said that we would commit to end years of uncertainty and a sale of the public-owned TAB would only be undertaken if it could secure the long-term interests of our racing industry and be in the interests of the WA community. Given the outcome, we will retain the ownership of the WA TAB.”