Bloomberry Resorts Group, a prominent player in the Philippines’ gambling arena, has finally resolved its dispute with Global Gaming Asset Management (GGAM). They’ve agreed to acquire the GGAM-owned stakes, marking this as a $300 million deal. This signifies the conclusion of a protracted legal battle.
This controversy originated when Bloomberry chose to abandon its agreement with GGAM shortly after the unveiling of Solaire Resort & Casino, a property of the former. Before this, an accord was signed by GGAM involving the administration of Solaire for a period of five years. Furthermore, in 2011, GGAM secured an 8.7% interest in the venture.
Fast-forwarding two years, the resort opened its doors to its initial patrons and immediately became a hit. As a result of this triumph, the Filipino gambling operation elected to terminate its agreement with GGAM, much to the latter company’s disappointment.
GGAM contended that the termination of the contract was in violation of the law and accused Bloomberry of withholding tens of millions of dollars in fees and other overheads that were due to GGAM. Additionally, they claimed that Enrique Razon, the proprietor of Bloomberry Resorts Group, used his personal connections within the Philippine securities market to hinder GGAM from divesting its interest in Solaire.
This legal dispute, which spanned over a decade, has finally come to an end.
Settlement is Reached Between the Two Parties After Over a Decade
In 2019, an arbitration panel based in Singapore ruled that Bloomberry had to compensate GGAM with $296 million. Singapore’s apex court ratified this decision in the year 2021. Bloomberry, however, was insistent that the reward ought to be acted upon by a court of competent jurisdiction in the Philippines.
In that same year, the case was moved to New York, where GGAM initiated legal proceedings against Bloomberry, urging local enforcement of the Singaporean tribunal’s mandate against Razon’s American assets. Allegedly, according to GGAM, the assets of the Philippine tycoon were obscured within a web of shell corporations.
Bloomberry attempted to have the case dismissed in the year 2023, an attempt which was unsuccessful. Subsequently, the corporation agreed to resolve all pending issues with GGAM.
Under the provisions of the $300 million settlement, the Philippine operator will acquire 921,184,056 Bloomberry shares owned by Global Gaming for $300 million via the Philippine Stock Exchange. This transaction officially ends all strife between the two corporations.
