STANLEY HO, the Macao gaming tycoon, said his legal dispute with family members over ownership of their Macao gambling business has been resolved, and he has withdrawn his lawsuit, driving up SJM Holdings Ltd. s shares.
A settlement agreement was executed March 8 among all branches of Ho s family on the basis of mutual understanding and mutual accommodation, according to an e-mailed statement from the billionaire s office.
Ho s privately held Sociedade de Turismo e Diversoes de Macau SA invests in construction, hotels and Macao s airline, and also owns a controlling stake in SJM, Asia s biggest casino company. Ho earlier said daughters Pansy Ho and Daisy Ho seized his 31.7 percent SJM stake, worth HK$12.4 billion (US$1.6 billion) based on Friday s share price.
The Ho family members agreed to discharge their duties to the family companies, closely held STDM and publicly traded SJM, according to Thursday s statement. The dispute was resolved amicably, the family said.
Ho, who has honorary doctorate degrees, said he withdrew a writ filed Feb. 16 against the daughters.
SJM, which operates most of the casinos in Macao, advanced 5.8 percent to HK$12.80 at the 4 p.m. close on the Hong Kong stock exchange, the highest level since Feb. 7. Before Friday, the stock had lost 7.3 percent since Jan. 24, when SJM said Ho s holdings had been transferred to family members.
(SD-Agencies)
