Hong Kong-listed casino developer Shin Hwa World Ltd says it has “decided not to seek further extension” of a deadline to find suitable land for a Philippines casino resort, a step required as a condition of a provisional casino licence it received in that nation.
It said in a Friday filing, referring latterly to the Philippine casino regulator: “The group has yet to identify a suitable lease of land to develop an integrated resort in the Philippines for satisfying the requirements of the provisional licence within the prescribed period as required by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor).”
The casino group already runs a resort called Jeju Shinhwa World with a foreigner-only casino in Jeju, South Korea.
Shin Hwa World Ltd said in its latest filing: “In light of the prevailing market conditions and the feasibility of fulfilling the requirements set out under the provisional licence, the group has decided not to seek further extension for the provision of a remedy which became due on 30 June 2023 to Pagcor.”
In July 2018, Shin Hwa World Ltd – then known as Landing International Development Ltd – had announced that a wholly-owned unit had received a provisional gaming licence from Pagcor.
But in September that year, the government of President Rodrigo Duterte said that a lease on Manila land the casino group had selected for a project was being cancelled. The casino group had then started a search for a fresh site within that country.
In its 2022 annual report filed in March this year, Shin Hwa World Ltd said it was still looking, and still in talks with Pagcor.
In its Friday filing, the casino group stated it “does not rule out the possibility of participating in any other project(s) in the Philippines in whatsoever scale or nature, to be carefully assessed and determined in future”.
It added: “The company will continue to explore new business developments and investment opportunities to broaden its income stream in order to drive forward its growth momentum.”
Shin Hwa World Ltd said it remained “focused on its business in Jeju Shinhwa World”.
