Philippine SC rules for Universal Ent in Okada Manila dispute
The Philippine Supreme Court has lifted the order restoring Kazuo Okada to Okada Manila’s board.
The Philippines.- Universal Entertainment Corp has announced through a company filing that the Philippine Supreme Court has lifted the order restoring Kazuo Okada to Okada Manila’s board. It affirmed Okada’s removal from key positions at Tiger Resort, Leisure and Entertainment (TRLEI) and clarified that he is not the controlling stockholder of the conglomerate’s ultimate parent company.
The company said it will recommence its suspended negotiation with the Philippines financial institutions and proceed with the refinancing of its privately placed notes outside of Japan with various covenants such as the limitation on share buy-back issued to fund the Okada Manila project.
Kazuo Okada, the founder of Universal Entertainment, was ousted in June 2017 amid fraud accusations, which he has consistently denied. In April of 2022, Okada had secured a “status quo ante” order, restoring the TRLEI board to its pre-removal composition. This order was used to justify a six-month takeover of Okada Manila.
TRLEI posts gross gaming revenue of US$217.7m for Q3
Universal Entertainment Corp has shared financial results from TRLEI for Q3. The casino operator reported that gross gaming revenue (GGR) was up 9.4 per cent quarter-on-quarter from PHP11.29bn (US$207.7m) to PHP12.35bn (US$217.7m). The figure was up 29.7 per cent in year-on-year terms.
VIP table game revenue made up the largest component at PHP4.42bn (US$77.95m). Mass table revenue was PHP4.1bn (US$72.29m) and gaming machine revenue PHP3.82bn (US$67.36m). Adjusted segment earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 45.6 per cent year-on-year to PHP3.56bn (US$62.7m). This was down 16 per cent quarter-on-quarter.
For full-year 2022, the casino operator reported GGR of PHP34.34bn (US$630.21m) from Okada Manila. The figure was up 81.5 per cent when compared to the previous year.
