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Indigenous Gaming Partners (IGP) has received court approval to complete its acquisition of Gamehost Ltd., expanding its Alberta casino and hotel portfolio to seven casinos and two hotels.
The Court of King’s Bench of Alberta has issued the final order authorizing the transaction after Gamehost shareholders approved the deal at a special meeting on June 11. The acquisition, first announced in late March, values Gamehost shares at CAD13.65 in cash per share and is expected to close before the end of June.
Once completed, the deal will bring Gamehost’s assets under the ownership of a subsidiary of Pure Casino Entertainment Ltd., an IGP operating entity. The acquisition significantly expands IGP’s Alberta footprint to seven casinos and two hotels.
Gamehost currently owns and operates Deerfoot Inn & Casino in Calgary; Great Northern Casino in Grande Prairie; Rivers Casino and Entertainment Centre in Fort McMurray; and Service Plus Inns & Suites and Encore Suites by Service Plus hotels in Grande Prairie.
IGP already controls four land-based casinos in Alberta following its acquisition of Pure Casino Entertainment last year.
Under the transaction structure, Pure Casino Entertainment will operate the gaming assets, while VICI Properties Inc. will retain ownership of the underlying real estate through a sale-leaseback arrangement. The move extends VICI’s Canadian presence alongside its extensive North American portfolio, which includes major Las Vegas properties such as Caesars Palace, The Venetian, and MGM Grand.
VICI has held ownership of the real estate tied to IGP’s existing Pure-branded casinos since January 2023.
The acquisition comes just weeks before Alberta launches its regulated commercial online gambling market on July 13. The province has already registered 47 operators, including both international gambling brands and local incumbents.
IGP, formed in 2024 as a partnership between five Nova Scotia-based First Nations and Sonco Gaming Inc., is preparing to enter the online space through its Pure Casino Entertainment Ltd. Partnership operating arm.
Once operational, Pure Casino Entertainment and other Alberta-based operators will compete with major global gaming brands, including BetMGM, DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars, bet365, BetRivers, PointsBet, and theScore Bet, among others.