BusinessAustralia s Star eyes Crown in $7 bln play, vies with private equity
Byron Kaye
5 minute read
Australian casino operator Star Entertainment Group (SGR.AX) on Monday proposed an all-stock buyout of larger rival Crown Resorts Ltd (CWN.AX) that it valued at A$9 billion ($7 billion), taking on two private equity giants for control of the troubled company.
Three months after Crown was declared unfit for a gambling licence at its new Sydney resort tower, Star said the share-swap takeover approach would create one of the largest and most attractive integrated resort operators in the Asia Pacific region .
The move presents Crown shareholders with a third option after buyout giant Blackstone Group (BX.N) earlier upped its all-cash indicative bid to A$8.4 billion, while Oaktree Capital Group (OAK pa.N) has proposed to bankroll a A$3 billion buyback of Crown s founder s stake, removing a regulatory concern. read more
The Straits Times
Crown said it was assessing the Star approach and the revised Blackstone offer.PHOTO: REUTERS
PublishedMay 10, 2021, 8:33 am SGT
https://str.sg/JtDH
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Star Entertainment proposes $12bn merger with Crown Resorts
Business by Lachlan Moffet Gray, Glenda Korporaal 10th May 2021 10:30 AM
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Subscriber only Crown Resorts and Star Entertainment Group would combine to form a near $12bn casino resorts giant under a merger proposal put by Star to the James Packer-backed Crown after months of informal talks. It comes as US private equity giant Blackstone boosted its $8 billion takeover proposal for Crown Resorts in a bid to end the seven-week stalemate over its initial approach for the company. In a statement released on Monday, Crown Resorts said it had received an indicative proposal from Star to merge by way of a scheme of arrangement comprising of a share exchange or alternative cash offer.
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The Star Entertainment Group has proposed a $12 billion merger with James Packerâs Crown Resorts. Star thinks its track record of operating casinos in Sydney, Brisbane and The Gold Coast puts it in a great position to help Crown out of its regulatory woes.
In February, Crown was found unfit to operate its new casino at Sydneyâs Barangaroo after evidence of money laundering in its casinos and other probity failures emerged in the long-running Bergin inquiry.
Today on Please Explain, Tory Maguire speaks with business columnist Elizabeth Knight about what a Star-Crown merger could mean for James Packerâs beleaguered casino group.