Gambling regulators in Victoria and NSW greenlight $8.9bn Crown Resorts sale

Crown shares closed at their highest point in almost three years after two key regulators approved the $8.9bn sale of the gaming giant to US private equity giant Blackstone.

Billionaire James Packer. Picture: Scott Barbour/Getty Images

Gambling regulators in Victoria and NSW have given conditional approvals for the $8.9bn acquisition of the James Packer-backed Crown Resorts by global private equity giant Blackstone.

The decision helped send Crown shares up almost 2 per cent to close at $13, their highest point in almost three years. That was just shy of the $13.10 per share offer put forward by US-based Blackstone.

The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission announced Thursday that it considered the Blackstone Group to be a “suitable associate’’ of Melbourne’s casino operator.

Billionaire James Packer.

“In reaching this decision, our specialist team put in many months of work investigating the suitability of the Blackstone Group to become an associate of the Melbourne casino operator,” said VGCCC chairperson Fran Thorn.

“Our approval comes with stringent conditions, which balance delivering stronger controls on the casino and ensuring it continues to be the flagship casino in Australia. We will take action should any of these conditions not be met by either Blackstone or Crown.”

The NSW Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority chairperson Philip Crawford said Blackstone had been subject to an extensive probity assessment that had “resulted in certain persons being approved to become ‘close associates’ of Crown Sydney’’.

Mr Packer, who now lives in the US and owns properties around the world, will receive $3.2bn for the 37 per cent of the company he controls if the deal clears its final hurdles.

Regulators in Western Australia must still sign off on the sale, which will then need its final approval by the Federal Court.

The VGCCC required both Blackstone and Crown to agree to numerous conditions and protections as part of its approval, which it noted “will apply on top of the strict requirements that currently apply to the casino operator’’.

Among the key requirements are that Crown Melbourne have a majority of independent board of directors, beefed up reporting of anti-money laundering efforts, responsible gambling activities and extra auditing.

For its part, Blackstone will have to keep Crown Melbourne as the gaming group’s flagship casino in Australia.

In a statement to the ASX, Crown noted the green light given by both regulators, as well as the final two approvals needed in WA and the Federal Court.

“As the gaming regulatory approval in Western Australia remains outstanding, the date for the final court hearing has not yet been fixed,” Crown said.