Hard Rock International has issued a statement denying that it has made a takeover bid for Australian gaming operator The Star, just hours after The Star stated that a consortium linked to a Hard Rock entity had been in touch about ‘potential transactions’.
In a filing late on Monday, Hard Rock International stated that it ‘is not involved in, nor has it authorized, any discussions, activities or negotiations on its behalf in connection with a proposed bid for Star.’
The group furthered that it ‘has similarly not authorized the use of the Hard Rock brand in connection with any proposed bid for Star by any third party’.
The news of the proposed investment or takeover caused The Star’s shares to rise sharply on Monday.
The clarification by Hard Rock International also includes mention that the company is ‘currently investigating this matter and will pursue all necessary legal actions to protect our brand and reputation’.
It also noted that ‘Any misuse of the Hard Rock name in unauthorized business dealings is taken very seriously’.
The Star’s note early on Monday had indicated that ‘the nature of the interest to date has been confidential, unsolicited, preliminary and non-binding’ regarding the proposed ‘transactions’ and that ‘none of the approaches has resulted in substantive discussions’.
It also indicated that the ‘inbound interest’ had been expressed by ‘a consortium of investors which includes the entity Hard Rock Hotels & Resorts (Pacific)’. The Star said on Monday that it had ‘not received a proposal directly from Hard Rock Hotels and Casinos’.
