Hoiana at centre of Suncity expansion in Southeast Asia
Suncity director has said the property’s first phase will open to the public in October
A representative of SunCity Group says to local press that its Hoiana IR project, located in Hoi An South in Vietnam’s Quang Nam province, forms the centre of the group’s expansion plans for Southeast Asia. In an interview with local media MNA, the SunCity Group representative said this was due to the company’s 34 percent equity share in the project.
The company is also working on a casino project in Sihanoukville, Cambodia in a partnership with Golden Sun Sky Entertainment, which is expected to open in March 2020. “We will also do our best in Sihanoukville as we have an option to buy 30 percent of their equity shares at cost within three years,” said the Suncity Group representative.
Earlier this week, SunCity held the soft launch of its second VIP room in Cambodia, inside the XiGang International Casino. The grand opening of the XiGang VIP room is set for June 24.
Last month, Suncity Group, Macau’s leading casino junket operator, announced that will permit rival junkets to operate at the company’s in-development integrated resort casino in Vietnam, and industry media, Inside Asian Gaming quoted Suncity executive director Andrew Lo saying up to six rival junkets would be allowed to ferry high-rolling gamblers to the new Hoiana resort when the property’s first phase opens to the public, later in October.
The Hoiana IR is a joint venture involving Suncity Group Holdings, Hong Kong conglomerate Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and local real estate developer VinaCapital. Suncity Group Holdings, a sister company of the Suncity junket operations, holds a 34% stake in the Hoiana project.
While the privately-held Suncity junket business is robust, the Hong Kong-listed Holdings Suncity Group Holdings reported a $217.5m loss in 2018, necessitating a $192m loan from Alvin Chau, who controls both companies. The listed firm has been expanding rapidly into resort ownership in multiple Asia-Pacific markets, and it seems that the Hoiana IR will be a major destination for the group.
