SkyCity Entertainment Group has confirmed that it rejected two takeover proposals earlier this year, including an approach from investment manager Oaktree Capital Management, after its board concluded that neither offer properly reflected the casino operator’s underlying value.
The New Zealand-based company disclosed the approaches on August 25 in response to recent media reports about possible acquisition interest. Both proposals were received in May and were confidential, unsolicited, conditional and non-binding.
A special situations fund managed by Oaktree offered NZ$0.70 in cash for each SkyCity share. A second bidder, which SkyCity has not identified, proposed an implied price of NZ$0.75 per share. Based on roughly 1.10 billion shares outstanding, the approaches valued SkyCity’s equity at approximately NZ$772.1 million and NZ$827.3 million respectively.
Neither proposal represented a straightforward cash transaction. The bidders sought at least eight weeks to conduct due diligence and required debt financing to be arranged before a deal could proceed. Other conditions included agreement on the final transaction structure, negotiation of binding documentation, unanimous support from the SkyCity board, shareholder approval, regulatory clearance and the buyers’ own internal approvals.
One or both prospective buyers also sought exclusivity and asked SkyCity to maintain its existing debt facilities while avoiding binding agreements involving asset purchases or disposals. Such restrictions could have interfered with SkyCity’s existing asset monetisation programme.
After reviewing the approaches with management and advisers, SkyCity’s board unanimously decided that the proposed prices were too low and that several conditions created additional concerns. The company told both parties that it would consider further discussions, including providing due-diligence access, if improved proposals addressed those issues. No revised offer has been submitted so far.
The takeover interest comes as SkyCity works to strengthen its balance sheet and reshape its portfolio. The group finished its 2026 financial year with net debt of about NZ$591 million and is targeting NZ$275 million to NZ$300 million in gross proceeds through asset monetisation. In July, SkyCity confirmed the NZ$74.5 million sale of its 99 Albert Street office building and Victoria Street investment properties, with settlement expected on September 1.
SkyCity has also started a strategic review of its Adelaide operation, which could ultimately lead to a sale, while continuing to focus on the priorities outlined alongside its FY2026 results. The company has not ruled out a future takeover discussion, but any renewed approach would need to improve materially on both the valuation and deal conditions attached to the rejected proposals.