This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia, which closed in 2021.

James Packer Acquires 20 Percent Ownership Interest In Nobu For US$100 Million

James Packer's Tastiest New US$100 Million Investment
Pat Scala/Fairfax Media

James Packer's Crown Resorts Limited has forked out US$100 million ($141 million) for a tasty 10 percent ownership interest in restaurant and hotel company Nobu.

The other 80 percent will continue to be owned by the existing owners Nobu Matsuhisa, Robert De Niro and Meir Teper.

Crown Chairman Rob Rankin said: “We see the Nobu brand as complementary to Crown Resorts’ global luxury entertainment positioning".

And the buy-in could lead to more Nobu restaurants in Crown's Australian operations.

"The Nobu business has an attractive near-term growth profile, with a number of new restaurant and hotel openings planned," Rankin said.

If that's the case, Sydney's proposed Barangaroo site could expect to follow in the steps of Melbourne and Perth with its own Nobu restaurant.

Packer could also choose to add to his hotel offerings by opening a string of Nobu hotels or potentially even a resort -- given the recent reports De Niro was scouting a site in the Philippines for that very purpose.

As part of the acquisition, Crown will nominate Mr Packer to join the Nobu board as one of four directors.

Close
This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia. Certain site features have been disabled. If you have questions or concerns, please check our FAQ or contact support@huffpost.com.