Lotte Tour Development Co., promoters of the upcoming Jeju Dream Tower Casino Resort on Jeju Island (pictured above) in South Korea, have raised 40 billion Wons (US $35.4 million) towards the project by issuing convertible bonds through a third party placement, Asian casino industry newsletter GGRAsia reports. According to the promoters, the money will be used to buy a “foreigners-only casino license” but also as operating capital.
The bonds issued were non-guaranteed convertible bonds that carry a 1% yield to maturity, 3-year duration, a 0% coupon and a conversion price that equals 8,300 KRW, without discount. The five backers that helped Lotte Tour raise the capital were: IBK Asset Management (1.5 billion KRW); KB Securities (3 billion KRW); Shinhan Investment (5 billion KRW); Pine Asia Asset Management (8.5 billion KRW); and Timefolio Asset Management (22 billion KRW).
“The successful issuance of convertible bonds with an exceptional condition – despite the financial market uncertainty due to North Korea’s nuclear crisis – is a result of high growth potential of Jeju Dream Tower Integrated Resort, which will become a key tourist attraction in Jeju,” a prepared statement from the scheme’s promoters reads.
The Jeju Dream Tower project will be located within close proximity of 1.9 miles to the International Airport on Jeju Island. ?The main partners in the project are Lotte Tour Co and Greenland Group – a Chinese real estate firm that owns 41% of the gross floor area, which they plan to sell as a hotel tower. Lotte Tour owns the remaining 59%, an area that includes the casino’s 750-key hotel, gaming area, shopping mall and observation deck. The contractor, China State Construction Engineering Corp, has supplied an unconditional guarantee of completion to the partners with a line of credit of 18 months.
The casino is expected to attract Chinese tourists, being located 0.4 miles (600 meters) from a shopping area that was reportedly visited by over 4 million Chinese tourists in the previous year. Construction is expected to be finished by September in 2019.