The saga surrounding Okada Manila and efforts by a US-based SPAC to bring the Philippine integrated resort operator public is one of the more unusual events in the gaming industry in recent memory. It is also one that some experts argue highlights the risks of foreign targets for domestic blank-check companies, reports Casino.org.
In a deal valued at $2.6 billion, Jason Ader’s 26 Capital is acquiring Okada Manila. If approved, when that transaction closes, the gaming stock will trade on the Nasdaq under the ticker UER.
The deal was slated to be finalized at the end of June. But it suffered a setback when, in late May, billionaire Kazuo Okada attempted to physically seize control of the resort bearing his name.
Okada believes he was unfairly ousted from the board in 2017. He is seen as leveraging an April ruling by the Philippines Supreme Court ordering the company to return the board to its 2017 state to affect the takeover of Okada Manila.
Last month, reports surfaced that Okada made an unauthorized $36.4 million payment to a company controlled by Okada Manila Chairman Dindo Espelata. The parties in question deny the payment happened, but several banks at which the gaming company does business say the casino operator’s assets were frozen.
As a result of the controversy, completion of the SPAC merger is delayed. Read more.
