Caesars Unit Files for Bankruptcy
Caesars Entertainment ended a turbulent financial saga today when it put its casino management unit into Chapter 11 bankruptcy despite a backlash against the plan from creditors including Blackstone's GSO Capital Partners. The news came as a relief to TPG and Apollo Global Management, two private equity owners who hope bankruptcy can stop the bleeding at America's largest casino operator.
TPG and Apollo bought Caesars in 2008 for $30B during the dying breaths of PE's pre-crash go-go years. The unit in question, Caesars Entertainment Operating Co., is $18.4B in debt. Its parent company hopes to turn CEOC into a real estate investment trust following the bankruptcy. Under the plan, the unit would slash its debt to $8.6B and annual interest payments to $450M from $1.7B.
