Belle raising P4.52B via stock rights offering

LEISURE ESTATE and gaming firm Belle Corp. has approved the sale of new shares to existing shareholders at P3 each to raise P4.52 billion for the development of entertainment complex “Belle Grande Manila Bay.”

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange yesterday, Belle said its board of directors has approved the issuance of 1.51 billion new common shares to existing shareholders, who will be entitled to subscribe to one new common share for every six common shares held as of a record date to be set after the firm has obtained regulatory approvals.

Belle has mandated BDO Capital and Investment Corp. as its underwriter for the offering while Deutsche Bank AG was named as international financial adviser.

“The majority of the shareholders of the company have committed to subscribe, not just to their own respective entitlements of rights shares, but also to any rights shares that will not otherwise be taken up by other qualified shareholders,” the disclosure said.

Belle is controlled by the group of tycoon Henry Sy. The shareholder group has likewise agreed to a 180-day voluntary lock-up on their respective shareholdings from the listing date of the rights shares.

The $750-million casino complex along Manila Bay is targeted for soft opening by the second quarter of 2012, paving the way for Belle’s transformation from an upscale property developer to a premier gaming and leisure estate company.

Belle itself is spending about $550 million for the development of the casino, hotel, condotel and theater complex while its partner Leisure and Resorts World Corp. (LRWC) will contribute $200 million for casino fit-out and working capital.

The integrated gaming resort complex, located between Macapagal Ave. and Roxas Boulevard, will offer 19,626 square meters of gaming space. The first floor will be devoted to the mass market while 6,000 sq.m will be reserved for VIP gamers. It will have 350 tables and 1,900 slot machines.

The facility will also include six hotel towers with 1,000 rooms by the fourth quarter of 2013, including 86 luxury suites, Belle said in a project brief disclosed to the exchange.