Iris Capital raises takeover offer for Reef Casino Trust
The board and major shareholders have backed a revised bid.
Australia.- Reef Casino Trust (RCT) has announced that Iris Cairns Property has increased its takeover offer to AU$3.72 (US$2.4) per share in cash for a total of AU$185.3m (US$119.1m). The bid is 36 per cent above a February valuation before Iris’s interest became public.
The revised offer follows amendments to the agreement signed in July. The break fee has been lifted to AU$1.9m (US$1.2m) and a requirement for regulatory approval has been removed since Australia’s competition watchdog already gave the green light earlier this month.
RCT’s Independent Board Committee has unanimously recommended that unitholders accept the offer, provided no superior proposal emerges and an independent expert finds the deal fair. The trust’s two largest investors, Accor and Casinos Austria International, together controlling over 71 per cent of shares, have indicated that they will support it.
Iris owns casinos in Canberra and Alice Springs and operates more than 60 hotels. It aims to expand its gaming portfolio with the acquisition of RCT’s sole asset, the Reef Hotel Casino in Cairns. It’s expected to send a formal statement to shareholders in mid-September, with RCT to issue its response later in the month.
