After the New Jersey Casino Control Commission approved a plan in May that will see Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated lease the operation for its two Atlantic City casinos to a recently established subsidiary, the regulator has now reportedly approved the casino license for the newly-formed enterprise.
According to a report from The Press of Atlantic City newspaper, Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated owns the Bally’s Atlantic City and the Caesars Atlantic City venues while the ongoing reorganization is all part of its plan to emerge from bankruptcy.
The newspaper reported that the New Jersey Casino Control Commission earlier determined that the new casino-operating subordinate should not be required to hold a full New Jersey casino operating license and has now granted it a Casino Service Industry License.
“We have heard today that upon implementation of the reorganization plan, the Caesars entities will have $16 billion less debt and $807 million less in annual interest and lease payments,” read a Wednesday statement from Matthew Levinson, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for the New Jersey Casino Control Commission. “That alone significantly improves the financial condition of Caesars’ entities.”
Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated is the operating arm of Caesars Entertainment Corporation and reportedly filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections in January of 2015 with long-term debts of around $18.4 billion. Following numerous lawsuits, the matter was finally settled in January after the Las Vegas-based firm agreed a deal that will see it shed liabilities of $10 billion in exchange for merging with its Caesars Acquisition Company subsidiary and separating its United States property assets from its gaming operations.
“Caesars Entertainment [Corporation] and Caesars Acquisition Company continue to engage with their respective regulators in jurisdictions where approvals are required for the merger and other aspects of Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated’s restructuring,” read a statement from Caesars Entertainment Corporation. “In addition to regulatory approvals, the merger is subject to approval by stockholders of both companies and other customary closing conditions and Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Incorporated’s restructuring is subject to the completion of the merger, certain financing activities, continuing oversight by the United States Bankruptcy Court and other customary closing conditions.”