The closing date for a deal to secure funding of up to PHP13.51 billion ($235.2 million) for a casino hotel project at Westside City in Manila has been postponed by 12 months, now scheduled for April 30th, 2025.
Suntrust Resort Holdings, a company listed in the Philippines that develops the Westside City casino hotel, confirmed the revised date in a filing made on Friday.
The Westside City Project, an integrated resort in Manila’s Entertainment City developed by Suntrust Resort Holdings, is planning to open its main hotel casino in the first quarter of 2025.
Back in July 2023, Summit Ascent Investments, a subsidiary directly owned by Summit Ascent Holdings Ltd. listed in Hong Kong, had committed to subscribing to convertible bonds amounting to a maximum of PHP13.51 billion ($235.2 million) issued by Suntrust. The deadline for the deal was set for April 30th of this year.
On Tuesday, Summit Ascent released its own statement regarding the postponement. The company noted that as of that day, certain conditions necessary to finalize the agreement were still outstanding. This includes Suntrust’s requirement to obtain consent, approval, and waivers from regulatory bodies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the Philippines and other relevant government authorities concerning the subscription agreement.
Summit Ascent stated that confirmation from the SEC has not been received as of the date of this announcement, despite Suntrust having submitted an application.
In its filing from July 2023, Summit Ascent Holdings cited the need for ‘financial assistance’ to Suntrust due to the latter’s failure to pay interest on both a 2020 convertible bond and a 2022 convertible bond.Â
Summit Ascent highlighted that this lack might discourage potential lenders or investors from providing funds for the remaining capital expenditures necessary for the development of the main hotel casino, potentially causing significant delays in its completion and opening.
On April 22nd of this year, Suntrust announced that its board had approved a $38 million loan from LET Group Holdings, which is the parent company of both Summit Ascent and Suntrust.
