Shareholders will vote on the proposed delisting at a general meeting on March 25. Assuming the vote is positive, the company will then seek approval from the exchange’s listing committee for the delisting.
The decision to delist from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange was brought about by what Melco Crown describes as a lack of “appropriate opportunities to raise additional equity in Hong Kong” and the limited volume of trading its shares has had on that exchange.
The company added that maintaining the listing in the HKSE “requires additional ongoing regulatory compliance obligations and such requirements involve significant additional costs and administrative burden.” The company will retain its primary listing of American depository shares (ADSs) on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange.
Melco Crown will have its last trading day on the HKSE on June 29. Shareholders will have the option of either keeping the Hong Kong-issued shares or convert them into ADSs, with the company covering the costs of the proceedings.