Scientific Games chair primed for 39% stake sell-off
Ronald Perelman strikes deal with Australian investment firm two months after putting shares up for sale
Scientific Games chair Ronald Perelman is set to sell his 39% stake in the Las Vegas-based supplier to Australian investment firm Caledonia Investments.
As first reported by the Financial Times, the deal will see the 77-year-old billionaire part ways with nearly 37,000,000 shares in the supplier.
According to reports, Caledonia will pay more than $25 per share in the deal, which will see it ramp up its investments in the gambling industry. The firm already owns a 10.4% stake in Flutter Entertainment.
In July, Perelman indicated that he was open to selling his share in the company after filing an SEC in which he had “determined to explore a possible sale of the common stock”.
The American saw his net worth drop from $19bn in January to around $7bn today after Covid-19 impacted operations across his entire portfolio.
Perelman’s investment firm MacAndrews & Forbes, which organised the purchase with Caledonia, manages his Scientific Games shares, as well as his shares in AM General and Revlon.
Last month, Scientific Games implemented an executive payment protection plan that would pay out lucrative severance and bonus packages in the event of their dismissal following a takeover.
The change in control SEC filing defined a takeover as a third party acquiring at least 30% of common stock in Scientific Games, which Caledonia Investment’s impending purchase far exceeds.