Hong Kong-listed Summit Ascent Holdings appears set to exit the Russian casino market after it was revealed the subsidiary that controls the Tigre de Cristal integrated resort will sell its entire 100% stake to a local firm.
According to details contained in a Wednesday night filing on the Taiwan Stock Exchange by Taiwanese firm Firich Investment Ltd, Oriental Regent Ltd will enter into a transaction to sell 100% of its shares in G1 Entertainment LLC – the operating entity of Tigre de Cristal – to local Russian company identified as Dalnevostochniy Aktiv LLC for a total consideration of US$116 million.
Firich currently owns a 20% stake in Oriental Regent while Summit Ascent holds a controlling 77.5% stake. LET Group, formerly known as Suncity Group, owns 69.66% of Summit Ascent.
Both LET Group and Summit Ascent Group entered a Trading Halt on Thursday pending an inside information announcement.
While that announcement was not yet forthcoming at time of writing, Firich said in its filing that it would recover US$28 million from the sale of its stake in Oriental Regent. This, it added, would result in net loss of US$18,390 but would also “reduce its exposure in Russia”.
Summit Ascent previously halted development of Tigre de Cristal Phase 2 due to the conflict in Ukraine, which saw significant economic restrictions placed on Russia by the global community. The company cited a changed business environment and the need to generate value for shareholders for that decision.
It also flagged in March 2023 that it may consider seeking “strategic local partners” to operate Tigre de Cristal as a result of challenges brought about by the war.
Meanwhile, Summit Ascent has invested heavily into Suntrust Resort Holdings – the Philippines company currently developing a US$1.1 billion hotel and casino in Manila’s Entertainment City – and has stated its desire to invest even more in the future.
In August, Summit Ascent said it was “naturally inclined … to seek one of the best and one of the most rapidly growing emerging gaming markets in Asia – the Philippines.”
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