Australian-listed Frontier Capital Group (FCG) says it will resume operations at Casablanca Casino, located within the Clark Freeport Zone in the Philippines, after confirming it has the necessary funds to settle a Php225 million PAGCOR escrow payment.
FCG completed a takeover of Hotel Stotsenberg, which houses Casablanca Casino, in February 2016 for a cost of AU$26 million in a deal that included an AU$25 million profit guarantee over five years from the operator of the hotel and gaming business, E!xcite Gaming and Entertainment.
However, the company was forced to close casino operations on 5 February 2017 after the Philippines gaming regulator ordered the escrow payment, with the E!xcite agreement also terminated at that time.
In a filing with the Australian Securities Exchange this week, FCG said it has now secured the necessary funds to satisfy PAGCOR requirements to reopen Casablanca Casino, a move it described as “imminent.”
FCG also revealed that AU$1.5 million of those funds have come via the termination of an agreement to operate the Mongolian National Lottery, resulting in the return of the company’s initial cash balance.
In a statement, FCG Chairman Henri Ho said, “The company has worked diligently to satisfy PAGCOR’s operational requirements and to secure the return of the Mongolian National Lottery deposit. I am pleased that both have now been achieved.
“FCG will soon recommence operations at the Casablanca Casino, with a healthy bank balance.”
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