Home / Poker News May 2012 / The Poker Grapevine – Boyd Gaming Buys Rival
The Poker Grapevine – Boyd Gaming Buys Rival
Posted by: Randy Williams - Fri, 2012-05-18 10:56
Boyd Gaming have apparently quite a bit of appetite for gambling on a corporate level: the company has just announced that it has purchased one of its main rivals: Peninsula Gaming LLC. The deal is far from a clear black and white transaction though, because Peninsula is plagued by massive debt issues. In order to undertake the deal, Boyd Gaming has resorted to a massive $1.2 billion loan. Part of these funds shall be used to refinance Peninsula’s $700 million debt. Peninsula investors shall also be paid out and various transaction fees shall also be covered.
The move will expand Boyd Gaming’s reach significantly, adding 5 new casinos to the already existing roster. Diamond Jo, Diamond Jo Worth, Evangeline Downs, Amelia Belle and the Kansas Star will be the latest additions.
According to Boyd Gaming CEO Keith Smith, the acquisition fits in perfectly with the expansion strategy of his company. The goal behind the move is to diversify the platform of the company, shoring up its financial profile and obviously generating real and meaningful value to please its shareholders.
The market covered by the 5 Peninsula Gaming casinos is considered to be a sturdy and resilient one, and the acquired operations are well-managed and in good standing too.
In other news: the UKIPT’s Dublin Main Event is without a doubt the most popular stop of the series. On Thursday, the above said event got rolling at the CityWest hotel, featuring a buy-in of €770. Last year, the
poker tournament drew a starting field of 718 players, who created a prize-pool of €348.2k. The winner of the event, Joeri Zandvliet, took home €83.5k.
Thus far, the first day 1 flight of the event managed to attract quite an impressive field of high profile professionals. Barny Boatman was there, together with Ross Boatman, Simon Trumper, Surinder Sunar and Jude Ainsworth.
In still other news: the Macau Poker Cup’s date has been changed. Instead of the July 28 - August 8 time-frame, the Series will take place between August 11 and 20.
