Landing International finalises sale of London casino

Hong Kong-listed Landing International has announced this week it has completed the sale of its London venue Les Ambassadeurs Club and Casino.

The transaction, which took place 11 October, has been tagged at HKD2.5bn (US$320.3m), according to a firm statement.

“All conditions precedent of the disposal agreement have been fulfilled and the completion took place on 11 October 2017,” said Landing International in a filing.

Les Ambassadeurs is situated in Mayfair where it has been operated by Landing International since the start of 2016 when they purchased it for £131m ($173.5m).

After the sale, the casino investor stated it would record a gain before tax of approximately HKD500m ($64m) from the disposal, representing ‘a return on investment of approximately 30%to 35% expressed as the ratio of estimated gain over initial acquisition consideration’.

Landing International is currently focused on their Jeju Shinhwa World development in South Korea which has taken precedent over their European operations, and this move will ‘strengthen the group’s cash flow and working capital position’. The entire development is expected to be completed by 2020 with over 2,000 hotel rooms and 1,500 apartments with its focal point being a large casino.