New Jersey Approves Casino Sale to Colony Capital, Paper Says

(Bloomberg) -- New Jersey's Casino Control Commission approved investment firm Colony Capital Inc.'s purchase of Resorts Atlantic City casino from Sun International Hotels Ltd. for $148 million, the Star-Ledger of Newark, New Jersey, reported.

The commission granted Colony Capital, led by Thomas Barrack, a temporary license to operate Resorts, Atlantic City's oldest casino. A vote on a full license is expected within six months, the paper said. Profits from the casino will be placed in a trust until then, the paper said.

Barrack, the former money manager for Texas billionaire Robert Bass, founded Colony Capital in 1991, which was one of the country's largest buyers and financiers of real estate in the 1990s. Colony Capital owns Harveys Casino Resorts, which operates casinos in Iowa, Colorado and Nevada, the paper said.

Colony Capital's purchase of Resorts could be completed as early as Friday, the paper said.