James Packer has hired investment bankers Moelis Australia to advise on any potential deal to sell his 37 per cent stake in Crown Resorts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Australia.- A few weeks after the\u00a0Blackstone Group made an offer to acquire all remaining shares in Crown Resorts<\/em><\/a>, key shareholder James Packer<\/strong> has indicated he is open to selling his 37 per cent stake in the casino group<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Analysts believe Packer’s decision <\/strong>may help flush out new bidders. Crown believes Blackstone\u2019s offer is too low.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The majority shareholder has released a statement<\/strong> through his private company, Consolidated Press Holdings (CPH), saying he will independently assess the merits of any proposal<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The release says: “CPH welcomes the Crown board\u2019s announcement that it will commence a process to assess the proposal and it will also engage with relevant stakeholders including regulatory authorities about the proposal<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCPH is open to considering, and will independently assess, any suitable transaction for Crown shares<\/strong> that may eventuate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fitch Ratings<\/strong> has said that Blackstone Group\u2019s offer to buy the company could allow Crown Resorts to keep its licence<\/em><\/a>\u00a0to run its new casino in Sydney\u2019s Barangaroo district.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Packer has been heavily criticised following Former Supreme Court judge Patricia Bergin\u2019s final report<\/a><\/em>, which found that the major shareholder had a \u201cdeleterious\u201d influence over the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After the Bergin Inquiry<\/strong>, all three of James Packer\u2019s representatives on Crown\u2019s board resigned<\/em><\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\nNigel Morrison joins Crown Resorts\u2019 board<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n