The Commerce Commission has received an application from SkyCity Entertainment Group Limited (SkyCity) seeking clearance to acquire 100% of the shares in Otago Casinos Limited.

SkyCity is a New Zealand based company listed on both the New Zealand and Australian stock exchanges. It operates casinos in New Zealand (Auckland, Hamilton and Queenstown) and Australia (Adelaide and Darwin), together with a variety of restaurants and bars, hotels and convention centres.

Otago Casinos Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lasseters International Holdings Limited, which is listed on the Singapore stock exchange. Through a wholly-owned subsidiary, it operates the Wharf Casino in Queenstown.

A public version of the application will be available on the clearances register shortly.

Background

Assessing an application for a merger or acquisition

When considering a proposed merger, the Commission must decide whether the competition that is lost in a market when two businesses merge is substantial. We will give clearance to a proposed merger only if we are satisfied that the merger is unlikely to have the effect of substantially lessening competition in a market.

For information about how the Commission assesses a merger application read the Mergers and Acquisitions - Merger Assessment fact sheet.