GGRAsia – MGM China senior notes now also listed on Macau market

MGM China senior notes now also listed on Macau market

May 18, 2021 Newsdesk Latest News, Macau, Top of the deck

Macau casino operator MGM China Holdings Ltd said in a Monday statement that its US$750-million in 4.75-percent senior notes due in 2027 – originally listed in Hong Kong on March 31 – had now also been listed on Macau’s bond market, the Chongwa (Macao) Financial Asset Exchange Co Ltd, known as MOX.

MGM China said its exercise was the “first dual-listing of U.S.-dollar senior notes by an integrated resort hotel operator in Macau”, involving the Hong Kong and Macau bond markets.

Bank of China Ltd, Macau Branch is the dual-listing agent for the transaction.

Mex Zhang, executive chairman and president of MOX, was quoted in the press release issued by MGM China as saying: “We welcome MGM China to participate in the building of the Macau bond market.”

He added: “This listing is an important step to promote Macau’s economic diversification and support the development of Macau’s modern financial industry.”

MOX was founded in 2018 by Chinese state-owned firm Namkwong (Group) Co Ltd.

On May 16, another Macau casino operator, SJM Holdings Ltd, said it had completed a listing on MOX, of senior notes at 3.90 percent interest and due in 2026, to the value of HKD1.25 billion (US$161 million) and MOP300 million (US$37.5 million) respectively.

SJM Holdings said the move was “the first time that a major tourism business in Macau has issued debt instruments for listing on MOX”. Commenting on the operation, SJM Holdings chief financial officer Benjamin Toh Hup Hock said it had been “well-received” by investors.

Also quoted in the May 16 release, company chairman Daisy Ho Chiu Fung said that SJM Holdings was “very appreciative of the commitment that the Macau authorities have made” to promoting a financial market locally.

She added that the gaming operator was “pleased” to support the “development of Macau’s modern financial system and the moderate diversification of the economy” beyond tourism and gaming.

Macau – encouraged by China’s central government – has pledged to diversify its economy beyond tourism and casino gambling, including via the creation of a market for financial services.