Stanley Leisure will this week launch a £250m bid for London Clubs International, the company that owns some of the capital’s most prestigious casinos.
Jackpot: Stanley’s bid for LCI would consolidate its position as the UK’s leading casino business
An indicative offer of 25p to 30p per share is being planned by Stanley, which is linking with Hg Capital for the deal. Hg is interested in buying a number of LCI casinos that Stanley does not want.
Stanley will take five of LCI’s six London casinos, including 50 St James, The Rendezvous in Old Park Lane and the Palm Beach in Berkeley Street. Stanley will add these to its London portfolio, which includes Crockfords Club, The Colony and The Mint, making it by far London’s biggest casino operator.
Hg is planning to buy Les Ambassadeurs, arguably London’s most exclusive casino situated at Hyde Park Corner, plus LCI’s overseas casino interests in South Africa and Egypt and its two regional English casinos in Brighton and Southend. It will also acquire two gaming licences in Manchester and Northampton.
Stanley hopes that by splitting the London casinos with Hg, the deal will proceed without falling foul of competition authorities. The bid will value the LCI equity at about £45m. Stanley will also take on LCI’s debt pile of £210m, which will more than double its existing debt of £165m.
The move should mean LCI’s banks suffer no losses on their loans to the company.
Hg Capital has assembled a management team led by Alan Goodenough, the former LCI chief executive who left the company because of ill health 18 months ago. He was responsible for LCI’s disastrous foray into Las Vegas. It invested more than $180m in the ill-fated Aladdin casino complex which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last year.
The move will consolidate Stanley’s position as the country’s leading Togel Singapore casino business, ahead of industry deregulation expected in 2004.
Loto-Quebec’s Casinos Are Clearing the Air
Effective July 2003, the Casino de Montreal, the Casino de Charlevoix, and the Casino du Lac-Leamy, along with the Hilton Lac-Leamy Hotel will officially be non-smoking establishments. As such, casino patrons and hotel guests will be obliged to refrain from smoking in all gaming areas, bars and restaurants. However, special smoking rooms will be available at the three gaming houses.
“Initiated some time ago,” explained Mr. Gaetan Frigon, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Loto-Quebec, “this measure comes in direct response to a request expressed by both our clientele and our employees”. In fact, by implementing this initiative, Quebec’s casinos will be among the very few gaming establishments in North America to offer an entirely smoke-free environment.
Under its mandate from the Quebec Government, Loto-Quebec is responsible for the effective and responsible marketing of games of chance. With a total workforce of 6,500, the Corporation is charged with the administration of its lottery, video lottery and bingo activity sectors, as well as the three State casinos, hotels, and the food and beverage services in all its various establishments. In conjunction with these activities, the Corporation is also dedicated to developing a range of international export opportunities.
During fiscal 2001-2002, Loto-Quebec posted consolidated revenues of $3.7 billion, with total net income in the order of $1.4 billion. Year after year, the Corporation returns the fruits of its endeavours in their entirety to the Quebec population.
