Genting Malaysia to sell land in Miami for US$1.22bn
Genting Malaysia plans to sell its 15.47-acre property to Smart City Miami for US$1.22bn.
Malaysia.- Genting Malaysia has announced in a company filing, that it is set to make a profit of US$967m from the sale of its land in Miami, Florida. According to the statement, it has signed a conditional sale and purchase agreement with Smart City Miami to sell the 15.47-acre property for an estimated US$1.22bn.
The property was originally acquired by Genting’s subsidiary Resorts World Miami with plans to obtain a casino licence in Florida. It comprises four land parcels, three under freehold for US$1.2bn and one under leasehold for US$25m.
It is expected that the sale will be completed by the third quarter of 2023. Genting Malaysia had originally paid US$259m for the four parcels in an agreement reached in 2011, of which US$13m was paid in 2017. The purchaser, Smart City Miami, is a real estate development company linked to the Terra Group, which is involved in several projects in the state of Florida.
The group says that the cash proceeds from the Miami land sale “are intended to be utilized for general corporate and investment purposes, including the funding of future investments as and when they arise.” Genting has been pursuing a casino property in New York, but the evaluation process has been delayed.
For the fourth quarter of last year, Genting Malaysia posted a 65 per cent increase year-on-year in revenue, at MYR1.59bn (US$360.7m). The segment saw a 30 per cent growth in adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) to MYR467.3m.
The increase was attributed to higher revenue from the leisure and hospitality business in Malaysia amid a further relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions and the reopening of national borders in April 2022. The opening of Genting SkyWorlds theme park in February 2022 contributed to an increase in non-gaming revenue.
