Blackstone weighs sale of casino operator JOA Groupe

The private equity firm is in the process of selecting an investment bank for a sale process expected to kick off later this year, three of the sources said. The discussions have been prompted by inbound proposals from industry players, one of them added.

JOA, which operates entertainment complexes that include casinos, bars, and cinemas, as well as online sports betting platforms, generates EBITDA in the region of EUR 75m, one of the sources said. The business has doubled in size since Blackstone Tactical Opportunities Fund and Kings Park Capital (KPC) took over the business in 2017 for an undisclosed sum. KPC is also willing to sell, one of the sources said.

Potential bidders could draw comparison between JOA and the sale of Italian gambling operator Sisal last December, two of the sources said. Flutter Entertainment acquired the provider of slot machines, online casinos, lottery, and betting games from CVC last December for EUR 1.9bn.

In an auction scenario, JOA is likely to appeal to traditional casino operators and real estate companies, two of the sources said. Austrian gambling technology group Novomatic is a logical bidder, one added.

JOA will rely on its status as one of the largest casino operators in France to attract interest from bidders, one of the sources. Bidders could also bet that JOA's casino offering will become a "digital play" in expectation that France eases its rules on online casinos, two of the sources said.

Though regulatory changes have lately been mulled, another source said online gambling would be no "slam dunk" for JOA because its retail-heavy business model is different to online casinos' technology-focused ones.

Previous acquisitions by JOA include that of Emerald group in July 2019, increasing its number of operations to 32, and the casino of Lac de la Magdeleine in 2018 from French real estate firm Socofinance.

Blackstone declined to comment. KPC and JOA did not respond to requests for comment.

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