[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] The U.S. private equity firm Blackstone has secured a tenfold return on investment through the sale of a Las Vegas casino.
According to major foreign media on the 27th (local time), Blackstone agreed to sell the Cosmopolitan Casino and Hotel located on the Las Vegas Strip for $5.65 billion (approximately 6.67 trillion KRW).
Blackstone acquired the Cosmopolitan Casino and Hotel from Deutsche Bank in 2014 for $1.8 billion, renovated the internal facilities including rooms, restaurants, and bars, and completed this sale after seven years.
In a letter sent to investors, Blackstone stated that the total profit generated from the sale of casino operating rights and other gains amounts to $4.1 billion, recovering nearly ten times the original investment.
Blackstone separately sold the operating rights to MGM Resorts International, and ownership to investment firm Stonepeak Partners and the Cheung Family Trust, operated by the founder of the Chinese fast-food chain 'Panda Express.'
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported, "Blackstone initially hoped for a casino sale price of $4 billion, but as the Las Vegas economy recovered, the sale price exceeded the company's expectations."
The Las Vegas tourism industry has shown steady growth this year despite the spread of the Delta variant. In July alone, over 3.3 million people visited Las Vegas, which is about 90% of the 3.7 million visitors in the same month in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bloomberg News reported, "Las Vegas casino prices continue to rise despite the COVID-19 crisis."
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