Suncity Group grows stake in Summit Ascent to 70%

Hong Kong-listed Suncity Group Holdings has become the controlling shareholder of Summit Ascent Holdings, the lead promoter of the Tigre de Cristal casino complex near Vladivostok, Russia.
Led by Macau junket boss Alvin Chau, Suncity Group now controls a 69.66 percent in Summit Ascent, which is also listed in Hong Kong.
The shareholder change came about after a rights issue exercise made by Summit Ascent, which raised nearly HKD1.62 billion, according to a Wednesday filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
The filing said that of the HKD1.62 billion, approximately 37.1 percent or HKD601 million would be allocated to the development of Tigre de Cristal phase two. The rest will go towards other projects or be used as working capital.
A press release jointly issued by both companies noted that, “Summit Ascent’s financial stability as a cash-rich, zero-debt listed company allows Summit Ascent to plan, build and operate Tigre de Cristal phase two with utmost confidence.”
“Tigre de Cristal benefits from lower gaming tax than other gaming jurisdictions, such as Macau,” continued the statement. “This means that there is a lot of room for Tigre de Cristal to offer attractive rebates, as well as the potential to capture these rebates with the help of Suncity to set up a direct VIP business line.”
Following the exercise, Summit Ascent said it would now be accounted for as a subsidiary of Suncity Group Holdings and be consolidated in the latter’s financial statements.
Suncity Group Holdings is separate from the Macau-based Suncity Group which manages gambling promotion activities. According to the latter’s website, its VIP entertainment services have a foothold in the Macau SAR, South Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia and the Philippines. DB