Caesars Entertainment Considering Sale of Interactive Unit

An affiliate of Caesars Entertainment Corp., which is in danger of following its biggest unit into bankruptcy, is considering a sale of its fast-growing mobile- and social-gaming business.

Caesars is working with investment bank Raine Group LLC to evaluate unsolicited bids for the unit that exceeded $4 billion, people familiar with the matter said. It couldn't be learned who has made offers. There is no formal sales process, the people said, and it is possible there won't be any deal.

Caesars Interactive Entertainment, or CIE as the unit is known, is one of the largest online, mobile- and social-gaming companies, with annual sales of nearly $800 million. It owns the World Series of Poker, a popular tournament held in Las Vegas every year, as well as non-gambling casino-style videogames like Bingo Blitz.

CIE has become one of the casino giant's most important assets, notching annual revenue growth of 28.8% in the first quarter.

That could make a sale another point of contention between Caesars Entertainment and creditors of the bankrupt unit, which filed for bankruptcy protection last year.

Bondholders have criticized moves Caesars made before the filing that put CIE and other valuable assets out of their reach. They have also attacked CIE's acquisition of World Series of Poker trademark rights. A court-appointed examiner in the bankruptcy said there is a strong chance creditors could be awarded damages in the World Series of Poker litigation.

Caesars has denied that any of its prebankruptcy transactions were improper.

Nonetheless, Caesars Entertainment has warned that litigation by some of the bankrupt unit's bondholders could force it, too, to file for chapter 11 protection.

The company, owned by private-equity firms Apollo Global Management LLC and TPG, had a market value of just over $1 billion Friday afternoon.

Alexandra Berzon contributed to this article.

Write to Dana Mattioli at [e-mail] and Matt Jarzemsky at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 13, 2016 17:05 ET (21:05 GMT)

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