By Oliver Gray
Investing.com - Casino and Gaming company Crown Ltd (ASX:CWN) announced today that it has sealed terms for its A$8.87 billion ($6.3 billion) binding takeover bid from global private equity group Blackstone Group Inc (NYSE:BX).
Crown’s chair, Ziggy Switkowski, said the board unanimously recommended Blackstone’s offer, subject to certain conditions including that no better offer emerged, noting that "The all-cash offer provides shareholders with certainty of value."
Shareholders of Crown, which has faced damaging misconduct inquiries in every state it operates in and has also been hammered by a COVID-19-led drop in visitors, will get A$13.10 a share, a 5.7% premium to the stock's last close.
The deal was still subject to an independent expert deeming the offer suitable for shareholders, as well as approvals from Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board and casino regulators, Crown said.
senior managing director and head of real estate at Blackstone Australia Chris Tynan noted that "We are very pleased to have entered into a binding implementation agreement with Crown and look forward to working with the company and its stakeholders to complete this transaction."