The Drew Las Vegas to remain unfinished

Casino and resort The Drew Las Vegas, originally expected to open this year, remains on hold following default.

US.- The future of The Drew Las Vegas, the tallest building in the city, is in doubt once more after its developer defaulted on loan payments.

The developer has suspended principal and interest payments since May 8, according to a statement published by the newspaper Korea Business.

The Witkoff Group had secured US$2 billion in loans at the start of the year with the intention to finally move forward with the much delayed project, but was hit by further crisis when construction was paused in March due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

More than half of the new funding came from major American investment banks, and the rest came from South Korean investment firms Mirae and NH Investments & Securities.

The deferred payments apply to the US banks. If they decide to scrap the project, take the losses and sell the assets they acquired in the real estate deal, the Korean investors could take heavy losses.

Construction of The Drew, which was originally named Fontainebleau, was first delayed when the original lenders backed out of the deal during the 2008 financial crisis. It was then bought by the Witkoff group in 2017.

The casino had been scheduled to open in 2020, but the date was later pushed back to 2022.

At the start of the year, Witkoff Group convinced regulators in Carson City that the project would be finished. It said the group had spent $10 million in research to determine that it would be profitable to complete the casino.