Operator News
Chile – Valmar Group agrees to acquire Clairvest’s stake in Marina del Sol casinos
By James - 11 April 2024
The Valmar group, owned by the Imschenetzky family , announced on Tuesday that they had agreed to purchase all of Clairvest’s stake in Marina del Sol, which operates casinos in Talcahuano, Chillán, Calama, and Osorno, as reported by La Tercera.
According to their 2022 annual report, Toronto-based private equity management firm Clairvest controls 50 per cent of the casinos in Talcahuano and Chillán, while in Osorno and Calama they have 74 per cent of the shares.
Marina del Sol is the third most important player in the casino industry, after Dreams and Enjoy. Last year they received 1,133,000 visits, which is equivalent to about 16 per cent of the 7.1mcasino attendees in Chile, according to figures from the Superintendence of Casinos and Games. In 2023, the casino chain reported profits of $8,840m in Talcahuano, $2,040m in Osorno, and $1,538m in Calama. In Chillán, meanwhile, it had losses of $305m.
The purchase is subject to certain conditions, including regulatory approvals and obtaining financing for the transaction, which must be completed no later than November 15, 2024, the companies detailed to the Financial Market Commission. The parties require approval from the Superintendency of Casinos (SJC) as well.
In January the SJC issued a certificate that authorized Marina del Sol S.A to continue to operate the Talcahuano casino for an additional period of 15 years. In March the SCJ announced that it had granted an extension to Latin Gaming Calama’s casino license to continue the operation of Casino Marina del Sol Calama, located in the Antofagasta region, for the next 15 years.
