Macau Legend shares to be suspended after annual results delay
Macau Legend said its shares are set to be suspended from trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange after the business announced a delay in publication of its 2021 full year results.
According to rule 13.49(1) of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange's listing rules, a listed company is required to publish its full-year results no more than three months after the financial year ends.
As rule 13.50 of the listing rules outlines, businesses that do not do so will have trading of their shares suspended. The suspension is set to begin on 1 April 2022 and last until the results are released.
Macau Legend stated that it is not able to consolidate its financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2021 due to travel and quarantine restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
After accounting for the time needed to fully consolidate the statements, the casino investment holding company stated that it expects its full year 2021 financial results will not be released on or before 31 March 2022.
Rule 13.49(3) of the listing rules states that if a company is unable to release audited results within the three months, it must release unaudited financial results.
However, the Macau Legend board stated that this would not be appropriate in this case, as its unaudited financial accounts “may not accurately reflect the financial performance and position of the company”.
Macau Legend stressed that its operations remain normal, adding that shareholders can expect announcements regarding the date of the board meeting to approve the full year results and the date of the results' release.
In January Chan Weng Lin, formerly Macau Legend's chief executive, was arrested and accused of commanding a Triad organisation. He resigned from his roles at Macau Legend shortly after his arrest.
Chan had allegedly partaken in a criminal syndicate that recruited Chinese residents to take part in online gambling. Alvin Chau, former chairman of SunCity, was also arrested for involvement in the same syndicate late last year.
Replacing Chan Weng Lin, Melinda Chan Mei Yi returned to the role of chief executive earlier this month.
Macau Legend did not mention the arrest of its chief executive as a factor in its delayed results.