Pharaoh’s Palace Casino sold to stakeholder
Macau Legend Development Ltd decided to sell the facility after the gambling hub’s casino industry experience a drop of 34.3 percent in gross gaming revenue during 2015.
Macau.- Macau Legend Development Ltd decided to sell Pharaoh’s Palace Casino. The buyer appears to be Li Chi Keung, a shareholder who already owns a 12 percent stake in Macau Legend. After Macau’s gambling industry began to decline, Pharaoh’s Palace Casino experienced a drop of 34.7 percent in gross gaming revenue, bringing in just HKD 744.4 million (US$ 95.95 million) in 2015.
The Pharaoh’s Palace Casino runs on a SJM Holdings Ltd’s license. In turn, SJM Holdings Ltd is owned by Macau Legend Development Ltd, which has heavily invested in Macau’s casino and hospitality industry. Macau Legend recently made an announcement stating that its board decided to sell the Pharaoh’s Palace Casino if the continuous decline of the casino industry made it difficult for the casino to make any significant profits.
On March 23rd, Macau Legend submitted a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange confirming its intention of selling its Landmark Macau casino hotel where the Pharaoh’s Palace Casino is located. The buyer of the casino is listed as “Li C.K.” in the filing, but later on, the Hong Kong Economic Journal revealed that those initials stand for Li Chi Keung, a shareholder who has a 12 percent stake in Macau Legend.
David Chow Kam Fai, chief executive and co-chairman of Macau Legend stated: “The past year proved to be challenging. The combination of the economic situation in China, the increase in new hotel and casino capacity in Macau and the changing profile of the visitors to Macau were among the key issues that negatively impacted gaming and non-gaming businesses.”
Chow also commented that for the time being, only a letter of intent has been filed with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, after which a number of terms and conditions have to be worked out and agreed upon before the sale could be officially completed. According to the company’s 2015 filing, the Landmark Macau hotel was valued at around HKD5.47 billion (US$710 million.)
