Macau junket giant Suncity Group Holdings managed to weather the Covid crisis to report a net profit for full-year 2020 of RMB786.4 million (US$119.6 million).
The result was achieved despite a 67 percent decline in group revenue to RMB199.3 million ($30.3 million) versus 2019, due mainly to gains in the company’s financial holdings and from its purchase of a controlling stake in Summit Ascent Holdings, which operates a China-facing resort casino, Tigre de Cristal, in Russia’s Far East.
The company’s travel segment, Sun Travel, accounted for more than half, RMB110 million of revenues. Rental income from its property management division in China accounted for another RMB37.7 million.
Suncity also holds a 33 percent stake in a resort called Hoiana that opened last summer on Vietnam’s popular South China Sea coast and which, like its Macau junket business, suffered from the near-total shutdown of tourist travel across East Asia stemming from the pandemic.
Revenue from Hoiana’s operations amounted to just US$4.8 million last year, the company said in a filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
“The time when Hoiana was ready for its preview was right in the middle of the pandemic, where there were no flights nor visas for foreign visitors,” Suncity stated.
The company said, however, that it remains “long-term positive” about its portfolio.
“The group continues to progress at full speed on various projects across Asia. When the pandemic is over, the group (will be) well-positioned to capture the growth in entertainment demand in Asia.”
