Belle to list 3.36 bln Premium Leisure shares this week

Sep 15, 2014 Newsdesk Latest News, Philippines, Top of the deck  

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Philippine casino investor Belle Corp said in a regulatory filing on Monday that 3.36 billion shares in Premium Leisure Corp that it already owns – but until July had not fully paid for – will be listed with the Philippine Stock Exchange “some time this week”.

Premium Leisure – formerly known as Sinophil Corp – got regulatory approval to change its name a fortnight ago. Premium Leisure is reportedly also pre-marketing a follow-on share sale to expand its investor base.

Belle subscribed to its existing 3.36 billion shares through private placement transactions in 1996 and 1997 at PHP1.40 (US$0.03) per share. At the time of such subscription, the shares were only partially paid at 25 percent, it said.

The company paid in full the remaining 75 percent of the subscription price in July 2014, Belle confirmed in Monday’s statement.

Belle is reorganising its gaming assets under Premium Leisure, including its 100-percent ownership of Premium Leisure and Amusement Inc. The latter firm is one of the partners in the City of Dreams Manila casino resort, a joint venture with Macau-based casino operator Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd.

The casino property is forecast to open in the fourth quarter of this year.

After the gaming asset reorganisation is completed, Belle will have enlarged its holding of Premium Leisure to about 90 percent.

Willy Ocier, Belle’s vice chairman and also chairman of Premium Leisure, had told GGRAsia that it was likely a portion of the 90 percent would be sold to the public.

Belle has meanwhile hired CLSA to “study the feasibility” of a partial sale of its current equity ownership in Premium Leisure. The company said earlier this month that it has not yet decided on the “timing or size of any potential secondary offering” for its shares in Premium Leisure.

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