Company Reports

Endeavour Group, the hotels and liquor spin-off of Woolworths, could take a larger share of the Australian $14-billion poker machine market following the announcement that Crown Resorts and The Star Entertainment move to cashless gambling services. The gambling regulator of New South Wales – the NSW Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority – has revealed that cashless gaming is set to become obligatory at the venues of the two aforementioned casino giants. Both Crown Resorts and The Star Entertainment have agreed to implement special electronic gaming cards linked to players’ identities…

On May 17th, giant Crown Resorts rejected the all-cash acquisition offer of Blackstone Group. The Australian casino giant described the takeover proposal, worth AU$6.5 billion, as too low. The rejected bid, however, does not mean that the company does not consider sale options, as it shared it was seeking more information over a proposed acquisition deal from its local rival Star Entertainment Group. Crown Resorts decided to turn down Blackstone’s takeover bid at a time when the casino company is under fire because of intense scrutiny from Australian gambling regulatory…

Australian gambling operator Crown Resorts has faced calls to make sure it provides better help for gambling addicts who speak languages other than English. This happened after some migrants have recently revealed that visits to Crown Resorts’ casino in Melbourne affected their finances and relationships. According to submissions to the Royal Commission into the casino company in Victoria, language barriers make it hard for gambling venues’ patrons to access support to control their gambling behaviour, including the self-exclusion option that allows customers to suspend themselves from using the casino services.…

Online gambling company Stakers revealed that it has surrendered its operating licence in the UK and has stopped offering its services in the jurisdiction. The operator made the decision to surrender the legal permit after in April a First Tier Tribunal dismissed Stakers’ appeal against the suspension of its licence. Last March, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) started a review into the business of the gambling company under the provisions of Section 116 of the UK Gambling Act 2005 that provides the regulator with the opportunity to check whether a…

The gambling regulatory body of New South Wales (NSW) said it will make a decision whether the new Sydney casino of Crown Resorts will restore its operating licence after it sees a report from an independent monitoring body. However, the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA) said that the gambling company is making significant progress when it comes to addressing the serious concerns that the report of Commissioner Patricia Bergin raised. As Casino Guardian reported, a few months ago Crown Resorts was earmarked as unsuitable to hold its gambling licence…

Administrators at BetIndex started the funds’ allocation process to former and current users of the gambling website at a hearing that took place in the Royal Court in Jersey at the beginning of the week. Last month, Begbies Traynor, an insolvency practitioner firm that was officially chosen at the end of March to administer the business of the collapsed sports betting operator, started processing some customer claims against the betting platform operator. BetIndex, the company running Football Index, previously issued a statement to confirm to its former customers that the…

The proposed merger between The Star Entertainment and Crown Resorts will probably put more pressure on state Governments, gambling regulatory bodies and casino operators across Australia, especially when it comes to permanently end the use of junket operators that bring foreign customers to the country’s casinos. The use of junket operators, also known as “junkets”, has already been seriously diminished because of the coronavirus pandemic that resulted in closures of national borders, but the recently published Commissioner Bergin’s inquiry in the state of New South Wales (NSW) once again emphasized…

Australian casino company The Star Entertainment Group has revealed its decision to take part in the competition for the local gambling giant Crown Resorts by making an official merger proposal worth AU$12 billion. A potential deal between the two entities would create a gambling and hospitality behemoth operating seven properties in four Australian states. The merger proposal is expected to be announced to the public through an ASX statement later today. It puts The Star Entertainment against Blackstone, the US private investment company that has already revealed it was interested…

A new bidder for Tabcorp’s wagering and media division has appeared, making a proposal of AU$4 billion. The new offer came from the private equity company Apollo Global Management. One of the conditions of the offer requires Tabcorp to transfer its gaming services assets along with the wagering and media division. Provided Tabcorp refuses to sell its gaming services division, Apollo’s offer is for an AU$3.5 billion acquisition. This is still a much higher offer, compared to the bid of AU$3 billion made in February. The giant Australian gaming company…

After operating for only two days, Crown Perth was forced to close again as there have been three reports for new Covid-19 cases, all linked to the hotel sector in Perth. After an official announcement by the Western Australian Government, Crown Resorts reported suspending Crown Perth operations at least until 8 May 2021. After the interim restrictions were imposed on 2 May, the casino, along with its food and beverage venues, was required to close again. Meanwhile, hotels, restaurants, bars, conference and banqueting facilities are still allowed to operate. In…