Imperial Pacific International says its business is still viable despite reporting a loss for the past two years and says its controlling shareholder has pledged to provide finance to settle its liabilities and and potential litigation costs.
The Hong Kong-listed group, which is building a casino on Saipan, said its 2020 loss narrowed to HK$2.85 billion from $3.0 billion, while revenue dropped to $26.5 million from $539.2 million.
It’s in negotiations over its casino license with the Commonwealth Casino Commission and is talking with lenders about extending its debt obligations. The main shareholder, named as Inventive Star, will also settle liabilities to the community benefit fund and capital investments if needed.
IPI won the license to build a $3 billion IR in 2014 and subsequently more than doubled the size of its planned investment to just over $7 billion. Its project raised eyebrows as being unsustainable for the market, while construction of the resort has been plagued by delays and labour problems and more recently lawsuits.
It’s also under investigation by the U.S. federal government and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network for alleged violations of the Banking Secrecy Act.
