US casino operator Century Casinos, Inc has announced the acquisition of a 51% stake in Hong Kong-listed Golden Hospitality Limited, which runs Vietnamese border casino Minh Chau.
Completed via the company’s Austrian subsidiary Century Resorts Management GmbH for a total consideration of US$560,000, the acquisition will see Golden Hospitality manage the hotel and gaming operations for a management fee while also acquiring a minimum of 51% of Minh Chau itself over the next three years for around US$3.6 million.
Golden Hospitality plans to start managing the operations of Minh Chau within the next two months for a management fee of 26% of Minh Chau’s profit.
In a press release, Century Casinos said the hotel offers 30 low-standard rooms while the international entertainment and gaming club offers seven electronic (table) games for non-Vietnamese passport holders under a provincial investment certificate that allows for up to 26 electronic games. Golden Hospitality’s intent is to upgrade and expand the hotel and gaming entertainment facilities.
Minority shareholders of Golden include a set of Asian investors “with many years of experience in the gaming and hospitality industry in IndoChina,” the company added.
Century Casinos said it is aware of three other hotel and gaming operations along the 800 mile Vietnamese border with China.
“We are excited about this opportunity to enter the Asian land-based gaming market with a relatively small initial investment but great upside development and investment potential,” said Century Casinos CEOs Erwin Haitzmann and Peter Hoetzinger.