London Clubs International, is understood to have made a tentative approach to Gala Casino, the betting and gaming operator, about the possibility of merging LCI with Gala Casinos.
Genting, the Malaysian gaming company that owns Stanley Casinos, has announced it has lifted its stake in Rank the casino operator, the embattled bingo and casino operator, from 10 per cent to 11.03 per cent.
A merger of LCI and Gala Casinos would create a business with 40 casinos in Britain, just one fewer than Stanley and eight more than Rank's Grosvenor Casino brand.
Analysts said it remained unclear whether the mooted discussions with GalaCasino, which is controlled by Candover, Cinven and Permira, the private equity firms was an outright sale of LCI. Neither party would comment last night, although a source close to Gala Coral said they would look at any proposal.
London Clubs has ten casino premises in the UK, five of them in London. Its clubs in the capital include the Rendezvous, 50 St James and the newly opened Empire Casino, in Leicester Square. It has recently opened Glasgow Casino and Nottingham Casino and has another in the pipeline for Leeds.
The downturn in the fortunes of the UK casino industry means London Clubs will struggle to recoup investments in the event of any sale.
This week, Guoco Group, the Malaysian owner of Thistle Hotels and the Clermont Club in Central London, raised its holding from 5.05 per cent to 6.05 per cent. The wealthy Richardson property family has built a holding of 9.3 per cent through contracts for difference.
