GGRAsia – Donaco says Reichel leaving Feb 12, names new secretary

Donaco says Reichel leaving Feb 12, names new secretary

Feb 07, 2020 Newsdesk Latest News, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck

Donaco International Ltd, an Australia-listed boutique operator of casinos in Indochina, has announced that the company’s general counsel and secretary, Ben Reichel, will be leaving the firm “by mutual agreement” on February 12. Mr Reichel had already resigned from the firm’s board in November.

“Mr Reichel will continue to be available to assist the board and the company after that date [February 12] via a mutually agreed consultancy agreement,” said Donaco in a filing on Friday.

The statement quoted Donaco’s chairman Mel Ashton as saying: “We have appreciated Ben Reichel’s professionalism in assisting with the transition to the new board. We are sad to see him go, but we respect his decision, and we are pleased that his expertise and knowledge of the company’s businesses will continue to be available in his role as a consultant to the company.”

The firm announced also on Friday the appointment of Marika White, an executive director of Emerson Corporate Services, to act as Donaco’s new company secretary, with effect from February 12. Australia-based Emerson Corporate is said to provide compliance and company secretarial services to public and private companies.

Donaco’s flagship casino hotel venue, the Star Vegas Resort and Club (pictured), is near Cambodia’s border with Thailand, a country where casino gambling is illegal. Its Aristo International Hotel and associated casino are near Vietnam’s border with China.

The group’s management is again in a period of transition after a boardroom battle and resignations. In early December chief executive Paul Arbuckle tendered his resignation, after only six months at the helm. June 24 is scheduled as his final day with the company.

The casino operator announced earlier this week that it was suspending – for two months – all litigation between the company and the former owners of its Star Vegas Resort and Club. The two parties have agreed to use the two-month period for settlement negotiations.