Legal claim "spurious", says GVC chief
Kenny Alexander says firm will "robustly defend" itself against accusation it reneged on joint-venture agreement with Canadian company 37Entertainment
GVC Holdings chief executive Kenny Alexander (pictured) has rubbished claims the operator reneged on a contract to form a Canada-facing joint-venture, describing the allegations as “spurious” and “without substance”.
Speaking to eGaming Review this morning, Alexander said the firm would “robustly defend” itself against allegations it had broken the terms of an agreement with Canadian marketing company 37Entertainment (37E).
On Friday 37E revealed it had filed a request for arbitration with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in London after the Quebec Superior Court enforced the arbitration agreement and granted a motion to refer its claims to the ICC.
The marketing company claims GVC continuously delayed the signing of a contract in order to pursue a takeover of bwin.party, with GVC later pulling out of the deal as it closed in on the £1.2bn acquisition, despite 37E having already begun operations.
Alexander’s comments are the second time GVC has denied any wrongdoing. When the claims first surfaced in August a spokesperson for the firm said “no formal agreement had been reached” with 37E.
“GVC is continuously exploring new relationships in new geographies and not all opportunities reach maturity,” the spokesperson said at the time.
GVC shareholders will vote tomorrow on the operator’s proposed takeover of bwin.party.