The Star Entertainment Group's largest shareholder supports Bally’s Corporation's proposed offer to acquire a majority stake in the Australian casino operator.
Billionaire Bruce Mathieson, the largest individual shareholder in Australian-listed The Star Entertainment Group, has said he will add AU$50m to the financial package with Bally's if the deal moves forward, the Australian Financial Review reported.
Mathieson holds a 10 per cent stake in The Star Entertainment Group and has approval to increase that to 20 per cent, which, if the Bally's plan gets approved, he would up his stake further and have board representation, the Financial Review cited sources.
The outline of Bally's proposal includes a minimum AU$250m to The Star Entertainment Group through an issue of convertible notes subordinated to The Star Entertainment Group's principal lenders. That debt would convert into at least a 50.1 per cent stake of The Star Entertainment Group's fully diluted shares.
Bally's is also open to acquiring a larger stake of The Star Entertainment Group and would consider alternative deal structures, according to a report from earlier this month.
However, The Star Entertainment Group is in the midst of negotiating other financing options, including the sale of 50 per cent of its Brisbane operations including Queen’s Wharf to joint venture partners Chow Tai Fook and Far East Consortium and a AU$750m refinancing backed by Salter Brothers.
The Star Entertainment Group has been dealing with financial issues in the wake of difficult business trends and well-reported regulatory issues that came to light in 2021 around anti-money laundering and compliance.
Source: Fantini's Gaming Report
