Casino giant looking to raise up to $4 billion
Posted by Gavin Smith on 13 Jul 2009 at 09:07
The world's biggest casino company is looking to drum up $3 billion to $4 billion dollars in funding and is even considering an IPO of some of its assets, it has emerged.
Reuters reports Las Vegas Sands is looking at several options including an IPO of its Macau strongholds in Hong Kong, according to the company's chairman Sheldon Adelson.
Quoted by Reuters, Adelson said: "We are looking at a Hong Kong Stock Exchange listing, among five or six options,"
Other possible initiatives include the prospect of selling stakes to private equity companies or getting construction firms in on projects to put together their own financing. Reuters added that Adelson denied reports that the company was thinking of a bond issue in the United States.
Casinos across the world have been hit by consumers tightening their belts amid the global financial slowdown.
Las Vegas Sands has reduced staff numbers in America and has even put ongoing construction projects on hold in Macau in order to save money.
Experts have said the company needs to raise in the region of $1.5 billion to $2 billion in order to finish its Macau projects.
Reuters has previously said that Sands appointed Goldman Sachs to examine the idea of a Hong Kong listing for its Macau operations.
However, executives believe there is some reason to be cheerful as the global economy is showing signs of bottoming out.
Reuters added that Adelson pointed out that the company's casinos in Las Vegas had done better than expected in May and June.
The firm's Macau interests also performed better than the sector average when it comes to visitor numbers and revenue.
Quoted by the news agency, Adelson said: "We are at the trough of the recession... From this point on, I think we are going to see an improvement,"
Reuters also reported the Sands boss said the company had delayed the planned sale of the retail element of its Venetian casino in Macau due to the state of financial markets, and that the company aims to continue its building projects in the enclave at the end of the year.
The Sands range of casinos includes the Venetian and Palazzo venues in Las Vegas plus the Sands Casino Resort Bethelem in eastern Pennsylvania.
The company's interests in Macau include the Venetian Macau and Sands Macao, plus involvement in a number of resort projects on the Cotai Strip.
Reuters also added that the company's new project in Singapore, Marina Bay Sands, will actually open in January or February next year instead of by the end of 2009.
The cost of this project now stands at $5.25 billion to $5.5 billion compared to an original prediction of $3.2 billion when it was first drawn up.
This project also faces falling visitor numbers in Singapore, currently down 13 per cent compared to last year. This is thought to be due to a combination of the global recession and the H1N1 flu outbreak putting off travellers.
Singapore first made casino gaming legitimate 2005 in an effort to boost tourism numbers to 17 million by 2015.
The Reuters report also mentioned a second casino being constructed by Genting Singapore, part of Malaysia's Genting Bhd, on the island of Sentosa, due to open in the first quarter of 2010.
