888 Holdings PLC has agreed to buy Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment for £898.3 million ($1.4 Billon USD), beating out a rival bid by GVC Holdings/Amaya Gaming for £900 million.

888’s cash offer may not be as high as GVC’s, but the company wishes to focus on potential synergies between the two businesses as opposed to breaking up Bwin.Party. The senior management at both 888 and Bwin.Party appear to be pleased with the deal and look forward to working together.

888’s Executive Chairman Brian Mattingley said, “This is a transformational opportunity for 888 in the consolidating online gaming industry, which is expected to grow significantly over the coming years. The Enlarged Group will benefit from significantly enhanced scale, an improved product offering as well as significant cost and revenue synergies”.

Bwin.party chairman Philip Yea said, “Bringing our two groups together will generate substantial financial synergies for the benefit of both sets of shareholders and create a strong player with the breadth of product, brands and geographic coverage to grow faster than either business would be able to achieve stand-alone”.