Blackstone Made An Acquisition Bid For Crown Resorts
- US investment giant offers $12,50 per share, 15 cents more than in May 2021.
- Crown described by authorities as illegal, dishonest, unethical, and exploitative.
- The Crown’s board is still wagering the offer, engagement with stakeholders and regulators will ensue.
Is The Famous Operator Unfit To Run A Casino?
Crown Resorts, the casino operator under a legislative and PR barrage fire, received an unsolicited bid from US investment behemoth Blackstone last Friday, to buy all of the Crown’s shares for $12,50 per share.
This is a third offer made by the investment giant, who already attempted to buy the troublesome casino operator in March and May, offering $11,85 and $12,35 per share respectively, and it is now waiting for the final approval from Crown Resorts’ regulators in Western Australia, Victoria, and New South Wales.
Last month, Crown Resorts was criticized by the Victorian royal commission for ‘illegal, dishonest, unethical and exploitative” behavior, but it wasn’t enough for Crown to lose its gambling license. However, in February 2021 New South Wales’ former judge Patricia Bergin concluded that the famous operator is unfit to run a casino located in its up-class Barangaroo complex in Sidney, NSW. So far, the Crown Resorts upper management already lost their jobs due to the regulatory troubles, and the company claimed a $261,6 million loss in the year 2021.
Blackstone previously bought 9,99% of Crown’s shares in April 2020. As for their latest proposal, the board of Crown Resorts told Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) they are still deciding what position to take and engagement with regulators and stakeholders is imminent.
