Suncity Group has closed all of its VIP Clubs in Macau following the arrest of CEO Alvin Chau over the weekend, IAG has learned.
According to a Suncity spokesman, VIP Clubs located at properties owned by all six of Macau’s concessionaire closed their doors at midnight. Suncity had previously planned to keep two of its VIP Clubs, at Galaxy Entertainment Group’s casinos in Galaxy Macau and StarWorld, open but the company later confirmed it was shutting those as well.
Suncity has long operated VIP Clubs at all six of Macau’s casino gaming concessionaires, at one point in 2019 operating 17 clubs throughout Macau and holding around 45% of the city’s VIP market.
But the company’s future is now on shaky ground following Chau’s arrest by the Macau Judiciary Police and imprisonment to await trial for alleged criminal association, illegal gambling, money laundering.
Chau’s Saturday arrest in Macau came a day after China’s Wenzhou Public Security Bureau issued an arrest warrant of its own for the Suncity boss, accusing him of “opening casinos in China” via the operation of cross-border gambling operations on behalf of Suncity Gaming Promotion Company Limited (SCGPCL).
Hong Kong-listed Suncity Group, which operates Hoiana in Vietnam, is a majority owner of Tigre de Crital in Vladivostok, Russia and is developing a US$1 billion hotel and casino in Manila, revealed Monday that Chau intends to stand down as CEO and director.
Shares in Suncity Group plummeted by almost 50% after trading resumed on Tuesday, eventually closing at HK$0.132. Suncity shares had reached a 2021 peak of HK$0.78 in February.
