Nagakov Inc., an exclusive casino operator in Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh, confirmed in Monday’s filing the cuts at the group’s Nagaworld Integrated Resort (IR) and salary cuts that have been in place since March. The company said the casino resort was an “active step” to manage the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, as it had been closed since early March.
“We have launched a streamlining program to improve cost-effectiveness, which will affect some employees,” the Hong Kong-listed company said.
“We believe that these and other changes we have made as part of our COVID-19 strategy will help us get back to business normal quickly and will help us deliver sustained financial stability in the long run,” it added.
In a filing on Monday, the company said it would provide affected employees with “improved termination compensation beyond the payments required by Cambodian law to support the transition to other jobs or business interests.”
Nagakov did not disclose how many employees would be affected by the layoffs. It only said meetings with affected employees were “ongoing.”
“As of this announcement date, a number of affected employees have signed mutual separation agreements,” he added.
The discussion of “potential layoffs” at Nagaworld (pictured) was confirmed to GGRAsia by a source in April. At the time, a Cambodian labor group representative told GGRAsia that more than 1,300 jobs could be at risk.
Nagakov also said it was implementing other measures to “minimize” the group’s cash spending. These include limiting on-site staff to cut payroll costs and cut staff salaries since March 2021, scaling back its hotel and food and beverage operations and closing some of its real estate facilities to reduce utility spending.
The company said it expects the move to reduce the utilization rate of monthly operating expenses from $8.6 million to $6.6 million. It added that monthly interest expenses should be reduced from $5.8 million to $2.3 million after repaying group senior bonds due May 21 this year.
“We are unable to generate revenue while our business is down,” the group said. As of April 30, the company had cash and deposits amounting to $451.7 million, according to the most recent filing. 파워볼사이트
In May, Nagakov said at its annual general meeting that it had approved a final dividend for 2020 of a total of US$81.7 million to be paid in July 2021.
“Our liquidity can support operating expenditures and interest expenses of more than six months with minimal revenue, and could affect net revenue from additional bond offerings,” the company said in a filing on Monday.
In the filing, the company said it proposes to provide additional notes internationally to investors in Asia and Europe.