Blackstone considers $3.4bn IPO for Spanish operator Cirsa
Venture capital giant Blackstone is planning to take casino operator Cirsa public in a deal that could see it valued at $3.4bn, according to Spanish newspaper Cinco Dias.
American investment bank Lazard has reportedly been contracted by Blackstone to advise on the deal, which is rumoured to take place around April 2022. Cinco Dias also reported that Deutsche Bank and Barclays will act as coordinators in the deal.
Cirsa was founded in 1978 and operates properties in Spain, Italy, Morocco and Latin America. It was acquired by Blackstone in 2018 for an undisclosed sum, beating out rival funds such as Apollo.
Due to Covid, Cirsa’s operations were negatively impacted, experiencing several closures during 2020 and 2021. In 2020, Blackstone granted Cirsa a €120m ($135m) cash injection to see it through the pandemic.
However, as restrictions have eased and its properties been permitted to reopen, Cirsa has experienced a slight recovery.
For the third quarter of 2021, it reported operating profit of €100.6m, bolstered by a return to full operating capacity in Spain. Its casinos segment for the country exceeded 100% of the income earned in 2019, while its EBITDA amounted to €40.2m.
At the time, Cirsa said: “These results reflect the strict fulfilment of the targets included in the contingency and commercial plans implemented to face the pandemic situation.”
But according to Cinco Dias, Blackstone is looking to offload Cirsa. Through this rumoured IPO, the venture capital firm is looking to maximise Cirsa’s value to recoup its investment.
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