The chief executive of the Nasdaq-listed blank-check company that hopes to merge with Philippine casino Okada Manila says it will move ahead with the plan despite a deepening management dispute over the resort, Nikkei Asia reports.
Okada Manila is planning to list in the U.S. by merging with 26 Capital Acquisition in a deal that values the casino at $2.5 billion.
Complicating matters, however, is a tussle over control of the casino. On May 31, a group associated with Japanese gambling tycoon Kazuo Okada, accompanied by police and private security guards, took over the Okada Manila property and installed a new management team. On Monday, three ousted casino officers filed criminal complaints against Okada’s group, including serious illegal detention and grave coercion. Okada and his associates call the charges a “fabrication.”
Jason Ader, head of 26 Capital, called the situation at Okada Manila “very fluid,” but said his company intends to proceed with the merger, which awaits shareholder approval at a June 28 meeting. Read more.
