Imperial Pacific International has been facing difficulties for the past year. The company could permanently lose its casino operating permit in Saipan but still has been given two more months to save the license.
The Commonwealth Casino Commission (CCC) had previously unveiled plans to hold some discussions in March 2022 in order to determine the fate of the Saipan casino license of the company. The date, however, has been delayed by two months until May following the casino operator’s request for some more time to organize the logistics of its legal team from the US.
The Executive Director of the Commission, Andrew Yeom, informed the Saipan Tribune that he did not oppose the gambling company’s request because this was the last chance of Imperial Pacific International to state its case. Mr. Yeom also reminded that was a revocation hearing, or in other words – the final chance for the company to comply. He further revealed that he was unwilling to give the company any chance to file a complaint should the recommended course of action involve license revocation.
The Commonwealth Casino Commission decided to still provide the company with some more time, although it wants to see the judge rule against Imperial Pacific International.
Imperial Pacific Failed to Meet Financial Obligations on Multiple Occasions
Theoretically, the exclusive right of Imperial Pacific International to run the only casino allowed in Saipan, Imperial Palace, should have been a great achievement. Unfortunately for the company, in practice, things have been disastrous for its operations.
The gambling operator has repeatedly failed to stay in line with various obligations, mostly the ones regarding its financial responsibilities.
It was exactly Mr. Yeom who filed the first 5 complaints against Imperial Pacific International in April 2021, claiming the company failed to comply with a number of requirements it was supposed to stay in line with under the provisions of its operating permit.
The 5 complaints were specifically associated with several failures:
- Failure of the gambling operator to pay the annual license fee of $15.5 million in August 2020,
- Failure to pay the annual regulatory fee of $3.1 million in October 2020,
- Failure to make a $20-million contribution to the community benefit fund in 2018 and in 2019,
- Failure to comply with the minimum capital requirement of $2 billion,
- Failure to comply with an order to pay the money owed to its vendors that was issued by the Commonwealth Casino Commission
The operating license of Imperial Pacific International was suspended in May 2021. At the time, the operator received 6 months to pay the aforementioned casino license and regulatory fee, which totaled $18.6 million, as well as a $6.6-million monetary fine. The company’s casino in Saipan was forced to cease operation in March 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
In 2021, Imperial Pacific International was put in receivership by a court judge who sought to liquidate assets in order for the company to pay down the money it owes. The operator managed to find $2 million in December, right before the announcement of the first sale and has now found another way to delay the process that will leave it empty-handed.
