As reported several days ago, shareholders for one of the biggest casino operators, Empire Resorts Incorporated have approved a massive $128 million-worth transaction which will see the company merged into Genting Malaysia Berhad. Empire Resorts Incorporated is a firm that owns the popular Monticello Raceway located around ninety miles from New York City in the Catskill Mountains.
Once the company’s officials have approved a disposal deal, almost 90% percent of the company is owned and operated by Genting Group and Kien Huat Realty Sdn Bhd. At the moment, the company is focused on developing its Resorts World Catskills which is a five-star casino and hotel resort located on the 1,700-acre property. The site is actually the former Concord Resort Hotel’s property.
When it comes to the history of the Empire Resorts Incorporated, the company was established back in 2003 through a business deal between Catskill Development LLC and Alpha Hospitality. The Catskills Development LLC company had bought the popular Monticello Raceway back in 1996 before the business consolidation with Alpha Hospitality which marked the beginnings of Empire Resorts International.
Reconstruction of Alpha Hospitality
The consolidation between the two companies was led by Robert A. Berman who used to work as the Alpha Hospitality’s CEO. In 2003, Robert A. Berman fully reconstructed the Alpha Hospitality company after the Bryanston Group’s shareholders were together indicted on serious charges related to tax evasion. In the time to come, Mr. Berman has managed to restore the company’s financial stability mainly by selling off some of its non-gaming assets and by merging the firm with the Catskills Development LLC company.
The Empire Resorts Incorporated company was born. At this time, Mr. Berman also arranged for the newly-founded company to sell its common stock which resulted in a profit of around $35 million. Almost immediately after being founded, the company became of the NASDAQ listed companies. In later years, Empire Resorts Incorporated bought the Concord Resort Hotel. This financial transaction, in particular, was later modified by the Genting Malaysia Berhad’s Kien Huat Realty and it gave major way to the latest company’s resort project which is worth over $1.5 billion.
The Disposal Deal Announced in August
When it comes to the company’s latest business deal which will see Empire Resorts Incorporated being merged with Genting Malaysia Berhad, it was announced several months ago in August. As revealed by several news outlets, the deal involves the USA-based Genting Malaysia Berhad’s subsidiary acquiring around 38.3% of the company which goes alongside the company’s majority stake which it already has in Empire Resorts Incorporated via its Kien Huat realty subsidiary.
The company responsible for the popular Resorts World Catskills was facing serious financial issues which could potentially lead to bankruptcy mainly thanks to the underperformance of its Sullivan County property. This venue opened its doors back in February of 2018 in the Monticello village. Several months after being opened, the property generated a massive operating loss of around $73 million. These financial issues that the company faces were among the major reasons for the company’s stakeholders to agree to merge with Genting Malaysia Berhad.
Commenting on the news, President of the Genting Malaysia Berhad USA-based subsidiary Edward Farrell said that this business deal will allow his company to cords-market Resorts World Casino City racino and Resorts World Catskills to finally reduce costs and significantly improve the venues’ financial performance.
