The New York hedge fund Standard General, founded by Chairman of Bally’s Corp, Soohyung Kim, has made a bid to acquire all remaining outstanding shares in the casino and gambling company for $38 per share, valuing the business at a $2.07bn.
Standard General’s offer, a 30% premium on the share price at the time, would make Bally’s the largest asset under the fund’s management and announcing the offer, Mr. Kim wrote: “Our proposed transaction would allow the company’s stockholders to immediately realize an attractive value, in cash, for their investment and provides stockholders certainty of value for their shares, especially when viewed against the operational risks inherent in the company’s business and the market risks inherent in remaining a public company.”
Bally’s owns and operates more than a dozen casinos and is also keen to secure a foothold in the rapidly deregulating but highly competitive US sports betting sector. Having previously acquired technology platform Bet.Works for $125m, Bally Bet is currently available in Colorado, Iowa, Indiana and Virginia.
The proposed transaction is subject to approval by Bally’s Board, which Mr. Kim also manages, although he has stated that if a deal is not reached, Standard General will remain a sizable investor in the company.
