Melco confirms list of interested parties for City of Dreams Manila
Melco Resorts & Entertainment has confirmed it is in the process of whittling down a list of potential bidders for its share of City of Dreams Manila in the Philippines.
Melco’s Executive Vice President and CFO Geoff Davis said: “We continue to run the process with the advisors. Potential buyers are signing NDAs (non-disclosure agreements) in the virtual data room and are working through a series of questions. And over time we will whittle down that group to a short list for the bidding process. We remain in close dialogue with our advisors.”
For the quarter ended March 31, 2025, total operating revenues at City of Dreams Manila were US$101.6m, compared with US$110.7m in the first quarter of 2024. City of Dreams Manila’s Adjusted EBITDA was US$30.1m in the first quarter of 2025, compared with Adjusted EBITDA of US$37.8m in the comparable period of 2024. The year-over-year decrease in Adjusted EBITDA was primarily a result of softer mass market performance.
City of Dreams Manila’s rolling chip volume was US$351.9m in the first quarter of 2025 versus US$527.7m in the first quarter of 2024 and win rate was 2.98 per cent in the first quarter of 2025 versus 2.2 per cent in the first quarter of 2024. The expected rolling chip win rate range is 2.85 per cent to 3.15 per cent.
Mass market table games drop decreased to US$145.5m in the first quarter of 2025, compared with US$180.6m in the first quarter of 2024 and hold percentage was 32.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2025, compared with 31.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2024.
Gaming machine handle for the first quarter of 2025 was US$1.01bn, compared with US$1.13bn in the first quarter of 2024 and win rate was 5.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2025 versus five per cent in the first quarter of 2024.
Lawrence Ho, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said: “City of Dreams Manila was impacted by the increased competition in the market.”
He confirmed that Melco was adopting an ‘asset-light’ strategy that will ‘reallocate our resources and support our long-term growth initiatives.’
Belle Corp, melco’s partner in the Philippines has said ‘any buyout of Melco’s interests in COD Manila is not part of Belle’s plans for the immediate future.’
The luxury resort is part of the Aseana City township development that includes the Ayala Malls Manila Bay, a huge shopping mall which is across from the resort. Nearby is the Mall of Asia complex within the SM Central Business Park that includes one of the world’s largest shopping malls, the 20,000-capacity Mall of Asia Arena, and SMX, the largest convention center in the country.
