Okada keeps nameplate in Manila casino

MANILA, Philippines - The ouster of Japanese gaming mogul Kazuo Okada as chairman of Tiger Resort, Leisure and Entertainment Inc. (TRLEI) will not likely lead to a rebranding of the company’s Manila casino-resort complex.

A source said despite the board overhaul, a name change of the integrated casino resort, named after Okada himself, may be difficult at this time.  

“It’s business as usual but the name, that would be difficult to change now,” said the source. 

Okada Manila is the newest integrated casino resort to open in the 100-hectare Entertainment City in Paranaque.

In a recent stockholders’ meeting, the TRLEI  board voted to remove Okada and elected Justice Manuel Lazaro as new chairman. 

Kenji Sugiyama remains president, businessman Antonio Cojuangco, Okada’s local banker partner Rey David and Steve Wolstenholme also continue to serve as directors, the company announced following the meeting. 

It said the changes were a consequence of the recent actions at Universal Entertainment Corp. (UEC), the Tokyo-based parent of TRLEI.

UEC suspended Okada due to irregularities in relation to his business dealings.

But the source said Okada continues to hold shares in the company. The suspension came after Okada’s second wife teamed up with his son and daughter from his first wife (who already passed away) to boot him out of the company after learning of his irregular transactions. 

Apparently, the source said, they wanted to distance themselves from their father. 

UEC said the suspension came after a special audit found out there is a possibility that Okada and another director of the company committed fraudulent acts when they extended the equivalent of $17.3 million loan from Tiger Resort Asia Ltd. — which operates Okada Manila — to a third party.

 “Recently, it has found out that there is suspicion that certain directors of the company illegally outflowed approximately Y2 billion from one of the subsidiaries of the company without going through proper internal decision-making process,” it said.

Okada and Yoshinao Negishi, director and general manager of the administrative division of the company, processed the loan.

 “In response to this, the company suspended all the rights and authorities previously held by chairman Okada and director Negishi with regard to the business execution and commanding in the company, its subsidiaries and affiliated companies, established an in-house investigation team consisting of the corporate auditors, members of the International Audit Office and external experts who had no interests in the company and proceeded with its investigation,” it said.

UEC said as a result of the internal investigation, a “serious violation of governance was discovered.”

“Specifically, it was reported to the company by the in-house investigation team that there was suspicion that the loan amounting to HK$135 million (approximately Y1.917 billion at current exchange rate) from Tiger Resorts to a  third party by chairman Okada and director Negishi in March 2015 was made in violation of internal procedures by the company and that, judging partly from the fact that the HK$130 million was subsequently transferred by a person affiliated with the third-party to Okada Holdings Ltd., a company where chairman Okada held a position of director at that time, the purpose of the loan was to achieve personal benefit from chairman Okada,” it added.

 The company formed a special investigation committee consisting of external experts to investigate the matter and clarify the whole picture as well as formulate measures to prevent similar acts in the future.

The three-member special investigation committee of external experts is lead by Michio Masaki,  former prosecutor of the Special Investigation Department of the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office.

UEC said it will be collecting back the funds because those were unauthorized, noting there will be no loss for the company and no impact on its business performance. 

In addition to the loan, UEC said in another disclosure that it unearthed two other cases of irregular financial transactions by Okada. 

In February 2014, Okada Holdings Ltd., a company entirely owned by Okada, was proceeding with a negotiation on land transactions in South Korea through Okada Holdings Korea.

“During the course of the negotiation, Okada Holdings Ltd. borrowed $80 million from a financial institution. Upon this borrowing, a security interest was created in the $80 million held by Universal Entertainment Korea Co. Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company, in the financial institution. Although the security interest was canceled on March 31 of the same year, approximately $170,000, the amount of interest that was supposed to be paid by Okada Holdings Ltd. to the financial institution has been disbursed by UEC Korea,” UEC said.

It said the creation of security interest was made without necessary internal procedures of the company.

The second case involves a May 11, 2015 transaction wherein Okada issued a bearer check worth HK $16 million from a bank account under the name of TRA, of which, at the time, Okada was a director.

On the 14th of the same month, Okada withdrew $16 million from a back account of TRA based on this check.

“As the series of actions leading up to the withdrawal of the fund described above have been done without necessary internal procedures of the company, there is a suspicion that they constitute a serious violation of governance,” UEC said.

In 2012, Okada was ousted as a shareholder by Las Vegas-based Wynn Resorts on allegations he gave gifts to Philippine gaming regulators.