Casino operator Melco Resorts & Entertainment (MRE) has bitten off a nearly one-fifth chunk of Aussie rival Crown Resorts and aims to bite off more as the opportunity arises.

On Thursday, MRE’s parent company Melco International Development informed the Hong Kong Stock Exchange that MRE had acquired a 19.99% stake in Crown for total consideration of AU$ 1,759,550,000 (US$1.216b).

Payment will be made in cash in two equal tranches, the first due in early June, the second no later than September 30. MRE plans to finance the deal through “internal and external sources of funding.” MRE also plans to pursue representation on Crown’s board and “welcomes the opportunity to increase its ownership” in Crown should the opportunity arise down the road.

Melco said Crown “shares a similar corporate DNA” with MRE, and the deal does represent a reunion of sorts, as Melco and Crown were joint venture partners in the Macau casino operations of Melco Crown Entertainment (MCE). That partnership ended in May 2017, when Crown boss James Packer sold the final piece of his MRE stake to Melco boss Lawrence Ho (pictured).