Sands China extends trademark rights for three years

Sands China will pay US$377m over the next three years.

Macau.- Sands China has reported that it has entered into an agreement with its US parent company, Las Vegas Sands (LVS) LLC, to continue using Sands trademarks. It will pay up to US$377m over three years from January 1 2023 until December 31 2025.

The casino operator will pay up to US$114m in 2023, US$125m in 2024 and US$138m in 2025 based on a percentage of gaming and non-gaming revenue. The group will be granted certain trademarks and service marks covering its corporate identity in mainland China, Macau, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

The deal covers the “design, development, construction, ownership, management and/or operation of gaming and casino facilities – including those that are part of a hotel or integrated resort.” In 2019, in pre-Covid-19 trading, Sands China paid US$109.5m in licensing fees from the US$133.m cap established for that year.

Sands China has announced that it will restructure the share capital of its subsidiary in Macau after it won a new 10-year gaming concession in Macau’s casino concession retender. Under the terms of the agreement, the share capital of Sands China’s royalty-retaining subsidiary Venetian Macau Limited (VML) will increase by MOP4.8bn (US$596m) to MOP5bn (US$621m). 

Sun Minqi, the general manager of the company, will own 15 per cent of the franchise company’s share capital. Sands China will subscribe for shares by allotting 40.7m Class A shares to its two subsidiaries, Venetian Venture Development Intermediate Ltd and Venetian Concession Holding Ltd, at a subscription price of MOP4.07bn (US$506m).

The company will allot 7.3m Class B shares to Sun Minqi at a subscription price of MOP730m