JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Shares of Gold Reef surged more than 8 percent after South African antitrust watchdog ruled the casino group would not have to sell a major asset to win approval for a $2.2 billion merger.
Gold Reef is due to merge with rival Tsogo Sun, which is owned by brewer SABMiller and South African conglomerate Hosken Consolidated Investments.
South Africa's antitrust investigator initially recommended that Gold Reef sell its Silverstar Casino ahead of the deal, citing competition concerns.
But the Competition Tribunal, which ultimately decides on such recommendations, said on Friday it granted the deal unconditional approval.
"This definitely removes a lot of uncertainty on the deal and I would think news that it does not have to be sold gives a lot of support for the share price," said De Wet Schutte, an analyst at Avior Research.
Shares of Gold Reef were up 8.3 percent at 1344 GMT, having risen as much as 11 percent earlier in the session.
The all-share deal will create one of the biggest casino groups in Africa, the Middle East and Europe.
Hosken Consolidated, or HCI, will eventually own 41.1 percent of the merged group, while SABMiller will own 39.7 percent and Gold Reef will own 19 percent.
The new company, will remain listed on the Johannesburg bourse and is expected to be the 36th largest on the exchange by value, with a market capitalisation of 21 billion rand.
