Imperial Pacific Denounces ‘Fake News’ Bankruptcy Rumors

Imperial Pacific Denounces ‘Fake News’ Bankruptcy Rumors.

Costfoto / NurPhoto / Getty Images

Key Takeaways

Saipan casino developer Imperial Pacific International (IPI) says that rumors circulating on social media regarding the company’s financial status and one of its senior executives are false.

Imperial PacificMark Brown worked in Atlantic City under Donald Trump. Now he’s back in the fold at Imperial Pacific having previously resigned in December 2017. (Image: Imperial Pacific International)

In a press statement released Monday, the company categorically denied it had entered into bankruptcy proceedings, adding that it had initiated legal action against the unnamed source of the rumors for spreading “slanderous, fake news.”

IPI noted that entering bankruptcy would have required an official announcement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Profit Plunge

The company is building the Imperial Palace Casino on the Pacific island of Saipan, a US overseas territory. The rumors come a month after the company unexpectedly 80 construction workers, despite having missed its deadline to complete the project for a second time.

IPI secured a two-and-a-half-year deadline extension from the island’s government but will still be four and a half years late on delivering, even if it hits its new deadline.

Last week it announced it was seeking to raise $38.3 million through a bond placement, money that will be used for “general corporate purposes.”

In August, the company announced its profits had plummeted 91.3 percent in the first half of 2018, largely because it had been forced to write off $733 million in unrecoverable bad debt, most of which was owed by just ten VIP clients.

Revolving Doors 

But IPI is not just shedding construction workers. Last month, its CEO and chairman, , became the fourth high-level executive to resign in just over a year. Since then, it has reinstated former chairman Mark Brown. Brown – who once managed Donald Trump’s Atlantic City casino empire left in December 2017 in order to “to pursue other projects close to his family.”

Along with the mysterious rumormonger, IPI is also suing Bloomberg, which has alleged the company engaged in financial improprieties with senior officials in the Saipan government. This has been strenuously denied by both IPI and officials on the island.

In 2017, following a death of a laborer, the Imperial Palace construction site was raided by the FBI, which uncovered widespread visa violations among the workers, most of whom had been shipped to Saipan from China.

Several of IPI’s contractors were charged with labor violations, including importing and harboring undocumented workers. They were ordered to pay millions in back wages.

Article Sources
Caesars Inks Deals with Keeneland, Red Mile for Kentucky Sports Betting Access editorial policy.
  1. Wynn, Encore Resorts on Las Vegas Strip at 100 Percent Casino Capacity

Compare Accounts
×
Manchester City Signs LeoVegas as Casino Partner for Europe and Canada
Provider
Name
Description
British Columbia Casinos Alleged to Have Been Used to Launder Millions by Criminal Gang  Borgata, BetMGM Team for Poker Tournament Series, $4M+ On the Tables  Atlantic City Mayor to Face Child Endangerment Charges Next Month  VIDEO: Lady Gaga Joins U2 on Stage in Las Vegas  National Labor Relations Board Scolds Red Rock Casino Effort to Pause Union Talks  Ontario Casinos Report Increased Suspicious Activity at Cashier Cages  Golden State Warriors Almost a Sure Bet to Repeat in 2018, Oddsmakers Say  Rivers Pittsburgh Roulette Cheating Case Sees Two More Players Charged  Caesars Open to Digital Spinoff, But Prefers Full Ownership  Atlantic City Mayor to Face Child Endangerment Charges Next Month