Philippine-listed casino operator Bloomberry Resorts Corp. has shelved plans to sell its Jeju Sun Hotel & Casino as the revenue of the foreigners-only casino resort in the holiday island of South Korea improves.
Bloomberry chairman Enrique Razon, Jr. disclosed to local reporters on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Business and Investment Summit (ABIS) that the company had a change of heart in disposing of its majority stake in Golden & Luxury Co. Ltd., operator of Jeju Sun Hotel & Casino.
The casino operator holds 96.23-percent stake in Golden & Luxury.
Razon, who was quoted by GMA News Online, noted that Jeju Sun “is now breaking even.”
Last week, Jeju Sun reported its first ever positive quarterly earnings since Bloomberry acquired the property in April 2015. In a regulatory filing, Bloomberry announced that its gross gaming revenue was up a whopping 436 percent to P151 million.
The Jeju Sun property, which is just a stone’s throw away from Jeju International Airport, has 208 hotel rooms and suites, 2,125 square meters of gaming space, and other amenities.
The property was closed for nearly five months in 2015 as Bloomberry undertook major renovations, then was closed again for another month as a regulatory penalty for the previous owners’ failure to pay adequate taxes.
Junket operator Iao Kun Group Holding Company (IKGH) had earlier expressed its plans to acquire Jeju Sun as it moves to lessen its dependence on the Macau market. The sale, however, was aborted after IKGH had trouble arranging financing for the $102.6 million deal.
Bloomberry also cited its plan to forge ahead with the construction of its second casino in Manila. The new Manila venue will cater to mass market locals, a segment that Razon said “doesn’t have easy access” to Solaire.
