Fertitta Ends $8.6 Billion Deal to Take Casino Empire Public

Billionaire Tilman Fertitta reached a settlement to pull out of an $8.6 billion deal with a blank-check company that would have taken his restaurant and casino empire public.

Fertitta Entertainment Inc., the parent company of the Golden Nugget casinos and the Landry’s restaurant group, agreed to pay as much as $33 million to end a planned merger with Fast Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company formed last year.

Tilman Fertitta

Photographer: Jin Lee/Bloomberg

“At the end of the day we ultimately determined that the right decision for my company was to remain private at this time,” Fertitta said in a statement ...