Australian casino operator Crown Resorts saw its share price jump on rumors that Las Vegas Sands may be interested in buying out majority shareholder James Packer. 

Crown’s shares rose nearly 3% on Monday to close at AU$9.90, a peak the Aussie operator hasn’t hit since mid-2020, right around the time that its regulatory problems truly began in earnest. However, the company spent a good part of the weekend denying the media reports that contributed to this surge. 

On January 2, the Sydney Morning Herald reported that Packer’s $200m yacht – in which the mogul has spent the bulk of the year hiding from COVID-19 on the high seas – spent the final days of 2020 parked alongside another superyacht owned by none other than Sheldon Adelson, chairman and controlling shareholder of Las Vegas Sands. 

The paper noted that there’d been “tenders between both vessels going back and forth,” sparking speculation that Adelson was discussing the sale of Packer’s nearly 37% stake in Crown. However, a Packer flack dismissed talk that the two casino titans had any contact during their boats’ extended proximity.