GGRAsia – Century Ent VIP rooms in Cambodia to open in Sept: firm

Century Ent VIP rooms in Cambodia to open in Sept: firm

Jun 26, 2024 Newsdesk Latest News, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck

Hong Kong-listed Century Entertainment International Holdings Ltd expects to start operations in “early September” at two VIP rooms in a casino at Dara Sakor, Koh Kong province, in Cambodia.

“With the VIP rooms scheduled to be opened in early September, the group is cautiously optimistic about its revenue contributions starting from the second half of 2024 and onwards,” stated the company in its report for the 12 months to March 31, published on Tuesday.

In May, Century Entertainment announced that one of its subsidiaries would be running two VIP rooms in Cambodia, under a three-year contract.

The two rooms have a combined gross floor area of about 650 square metres (6,997 sq feet), featuring seven gaming tables, said the company.

Century Entertainment will be entitled to 100 percent of winnings and be responsible for the entire house losses, and “shall bear the relevant staff costs and taxes associated with such gaming business”.

The casino belongs to an entity called LongBay Entertainment Co. Ltd, and is located at the LongBay Century Hotel.

In its annual report, Century Entertainment also said the group would “look beyond Cambodia” for business opportunities, including in Thailand, if the country eventually legalises casino gambling.

“The group will closely monitor the developments in neighbouring Thailand, where plans to legalise casinos are under way,” noted the Hong Kong-listed company. “This presents a compelling opportunity for geographic expansion, and the group will be well-prepared to adapt its strategy accordingly to seize emerging market dynamics.”

Century Entertainment “recorded no revenue for the years ended 31 March 2024 and 2023,” according to the annual report.

Net loss for the 12 months to March 31 this year, amounted to approximately HKD24.2 million (US$3.1 million), an improvement on the HKD62.5-million loss in the prior year.

“The change in net loss … was mainly because there is no written-off/impairment loss on intangible assets, and impairment loss on accounts and other receivables, net of reversal decreased approximately by HKD15.4 million,” stated the firm.