Melco International Development Limited, formerly The Macao Electric Lighting Company Limited, is a multinational investment holding company based in

Central, Hong Kong Central (also Central District) is the central business district of Hong Kong. It is located in Central and Western District, on the north shore of Hong Kong Island, across Victoria Harbour from Tsim Sha Tsui, the southernmost point of Kowloon ...

."The Best Bet in Macau Is Casino Operator Melco"
''

Barron's Barron's or Barrons may refer to: *Barron's Educational Series, a publisher of books, as well as college entrance exam preparation classes and materials, now an imprint of Kaplan Test Prep ** B.E.S. Publishing, the former owner of Barron's * ''Barr ...

'', Lesli P. Norton, May 5, 2008 Melco International invests in casino and hospitality business and other businesses in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

,Melco International Development Ltd.
Profile at

Bloomberg Businessweek ''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'', is an American weekly business magazine published fifty times a year. Since 2009, the magazine is owned by New York City-based Bloomberg L.P. The magazine debuted in New York City ...

and

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...

. One of the 100 oldest companies in Hong Kong, it was founded in 1910 and listed on the

Hong Kong Stock Exchange The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (SEHK, also known as Hong Kong Stock Exchange) is a stock exchange based in Hong Kong. As of the end of 2020, it has 2,538 listed companies with a combined market capitalization of HK$47 trillion. It is rep ...

in 1927. Originally an electricity supplier to

,"Country Water Action: Macau Water – Aiming Higher"

Asian Development Bank The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank established on 19 December 1966, which is headquartered in the Ortigas Center located in the city of Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. The bank also maintains 31 field of ...

, June 30, 2008 around 2001 Melco International diversified into casino development and operations, building casino resorts"Melco's new $1 billion Macau hotel to operate without casino junkets: CEO"
''

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was est ...

'', Farah Master, May 6, 2018 such as

Studio City Macau Studio City is a hotel casino resort on the Cotai Strip in Cotai, Macau. The Hollywood studio-themed leisure resort is the first in Asia to integrate television and film production facilities, retail, gaming and hotels. It is majority-owned ...

, City of Dreams Macau,

City of Dreams Manila City of Dreams Manila is a luxury integrated resort and casino complex located on the Entertainment City gaming strip at Asean Avenue and Roxas Boulevard in Parañaque, Metro Manila, Philippines. Overview It is owned by Melco Resorts and Enter ...

, and

Altira Macau Altira Macau (, Portuguese: Altira Macau) formerly known as Crown Macau, is an integrated resort and casino in Taipa, Macau, SAR China. The hotel complex has 216 guest rooms and a spa. Altira Macau is the tallest building in Taipa and among the ...

. Currently the major subsidiary that Melco International operates is Melco Resorts & Entertainment Limited."Directors"
Melco Group, melco-group.com

History

1910–1987 – Macao Electric Lighting

The legacy company of Melco International Development Limited, the Macao Electric Lighting Company, Limited (MELCO), was incorporated in 1910."Melco International Develop. (200:Hong Kong)"
''

Bloomberg Bloomberg may refer to: People * Daniel J. Bloomberg (1905–1984), audio engineer * Georgina Bloomberg (born 1983), professional equestrian * Michael Bloomberg (born 1942), American businessman and founder of Bloomberg L.P.; politician and m ...

''"12 years of Cotai"
''Macao Magazine'', July 31, 2016 The company was among the first 100 companies established in

"Corporate Milestones"
Melco and the first company to supply power to the city of Macau. The company was listed on the

in 1927."Corporate Profile"
Melco International

1988–2004 – Melco International

The Macao Electric Lighting Company, Limited was renamed Melco International Development Limited (Melco International) in 1988. In 1993, Melco International became a subsidiary of

Shun Tak Holdings Shun Tak Holdings Limited () is a Hong Kong-Macau company founded in 1972. It has been one of the constituents of the Hang Seng Hong Kong MidCap Index since 11 September 2006. The company is active in shipping, property, hospitality and investme ...

and acquired Aberdeen Restaurant Enterprises Limited, which owned the

Jumbo Floating Restaurant Jumbo Kingdom () consisted of the Jumbo Floating Restaurant () and the adjacent Tai Pak Floating Restaurant (), which were tourist attractions in Aberdeen South Typhoon Shelter, within Hong Kong's Aberdeen Harbour. During its 44 years of oper ...

and Tai Pak Floating Restaurant in Aberdeen, Hong Kong."Young Ho grabs his chance"
''

South China Morning Post The ''South China Morning Post'' (''SCMP''), with its Sunday edition, the ''Sunday Morning Post'', is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper owned by Alibaba Group. Founded in 1903 by Tse Tsan-tai and Alfred Cunningham, it has remained ...

'', Enoch Yiu, December 2, 2002 Melco International ceased to be a subsidiary of Shun Tak Holdings in 1996. Lasting Legend Limited became Melco International's single largest shareholder in 2001 and

Lawrence Ho Lawrence Ho Yau-lung (; born 1977) is a Hong Kong-born Canadian businessman. Starting his career as an investment banker at Jardine Fleming and Citibank, in 2001 he took over operations at Melco International. Later named chairman and CEO, ...

became Melco International's managing director. In 2002, Melco International acquired the natural gas supplier Tongda Energy. Also renovating its Jumbo restaurant brand, Melco International expanded into finances and technology with stakes in companies"Gambling heir raises the stakes in Macau"
''

'', May 8, 2006 such as iAsia Technology Limited, which was renamed as Value Convergence Holdings Limited. In 2003, Value Convergence together with its units VC CEF Capital, VC CEF Brokerage and VC CEF Futures became Melco International's subsidiaries, which were subsequently disposed of in 2009. Melco International's Mocha Clubs, opened in 2003, helped introduce "cafe-style slot-machine parlors" to Macau, which were uncommon at the time. Melco completed the acquisition of Mocha Slot Group Limited in 2004. After opening its Macau headquarters in 2003, the following year Melco International opened offices in Beijing,

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...

Shenzhen Shenzhen (; ; ; ), also historically known as Sham Chun, is a major sub-provincial city and one of the special economic zones of China. The city is located on the east bank of the Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern provi ...

and

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...

. In 2004, Melco International acquired a 50% stake in

."Melco to buy Macau stake from chairman"
''

Las Vegas Sun The ''Las Vegas Sun'' is one of the Las Vegas Valley's two daily subscription newspapers. It is owned by the Greenspun family and is affiliated with Greenspun Media Group. The paper published afternoons on weekdays from 1990 to 2005 and is no ...

'', September 14, 2004

2004–2014 – Integrated resorts

Melco International formed a joint venture with

Publishing and Broadcasting Limited Publishing and Broadcasting Limited (PBL) was one of Australia's largest corporations. With interests primarily in media and gambling, for the entirety of its existence it was largely controlled by the Packer family. History Predecessors PB ...

(PBL), an

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

n casino operator, in November 2004."PBL withdraws from Singapore casino bid"
''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

'', January 3, 2006 With Lawrence Ho and PBL's chief executive

James Packer James Douglas Packer (born 8 September 1967) is an Australian billionaire businessman and investor. Packer is the son of Kerry Packer , a media mogul, and his wife, Roslyn Packer . He is the grandson of Sir Frank Packer. He inherited control o ...

appointed co-chairmen,"Out From Macau: Lawrence Ho's Melco International Signs MOU With Spanish Company"
''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'', Russell Flannery, April 27, 2014 the venture was breaking ground on a new casino project in Macau by December 2004. Melco International's profit increased 770% in 2005 to HK$534.2 million, and by 2006 the company had regained profitability. Also in 2006 the joint venture purchased the final available gaming license in Macau from

Steve Wynn Stephen Alan Wynn (''né'' Weinberg; born January 27, 1942) is an American real estate developer and art collector. He is known for his involvement in the American luxury casino and hotel industry. Early in his career he oversaw the construction ...

at US$900 million, announcing a new focus on "

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Veg ...

-style entertainment" with hotels, serviced apartments, shopping, restaurants, and various kinds of entertainment. Melco PBL Entertainment was listed on the

NASDAQ The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...

Global Select Market in 2006."Melco gets clearance for Nasdaq listing"
''

'', Tom Mitchell, October 26, 2006 With Melco International retaining a third of the shares, the

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investme ...

raised US$1.14 billion and ranked as the year's fourth-largest IPO in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. Several months later, its

resort opened in 2007. In 2008, Melco PBL Entertainment changed its name to Melco Crown Entertainment Limited, or MCE. Melco International was a founding signatory of the Hong Kong Corporate Governance Charter. Melco International became a member of the Hang Seng Corporate Sustainability Index in 2013. Between April 2013 and April 2014, Melco International's stock rose by half in value in Hong Kong.

2015–2020 – Melco Resorts and listings

In May 2016, the company became the single largest shareholder of Melco Crown. In May 2017, Melco Crown ended its partnership with Crown Resorts and became Melco Resorts & Entertainment (MLCO)."Melco Crown Falls 5%: Ho Offers Shares, Goes Solo"
''

'', Dimitra DeFotis, May 8, 2017 With Crown's stake purchased for $1.16 billion, Melco International via Melco Resorts at the time owned three resorts in Macau, eight Mocha Clubs, and a resort in the Philippines. In May 2017, ''

'' recorded Melco International as having assets of $13.4 billion, 20,548 employees, and a market cap of $2.8 billion. It also ranked fourth on the ''Forbes'' list of 2017 Growth Champions."#4 Melco International Development"
''

'', May 24, 2017 With Lawrence Ho as chairman and chief executive, in October 2018 Melco Resorts filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission"Melco plans to spin off Studio City"
'' The Standard'', Avery Chen, October 11, 2018 for a spin-off and

NYSE The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its liste ...

listing of its Studio City International Holdings Limited unit."Melco International Plans Spin-Off, Separate Listing of Studio City International Holdings in U.S."
''

Fox News Network The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is ow ...

'', Joanne Chiu, August 14, 2017 With Melco Resorts owning 60% of Studio City,"Melco's VIP tables at Studio City could be put to 'better use' in City of Dreams or Altira after 2020 – Brokerage"
''Macau News Agency'', Nelson Moura, January 16, 2019 the press reported the IPO could raise as much as HK$2.8 billion, with Melco Resorts to remain majority shareholder."Melco shares jump as it plans US listing for Studio City unit"
''

'', Laura He, July 20, 2018 Melco Resorts continues to be listed on the

NASDAQ Global Select Market The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...

."Melco named Socially Responsible Operator of the Year at 12th International Gaming Awards"
''

'', Press release, February 12, 2019 As an investment holding company, Melco International Development Limited currently has investments in Hong Kong, China, Cyprus, and the Philippines. Active Melco International subsidiaries beyond Melco Resorts include Entertainment Gaming Asia, Inc., which focuses on social gaming platform development businesses. In 2019, Melco International listed revenues of HK$45 billion, with profits of HK$1.8 billion.

Major subsidiary

Melco Resorts & Entertainment Limited

Melco Resorts & Entertainment (Melco Resorts) operates as a subsidiary of Melco International, which owns 51.2% of the shares. Referred to as Melco PBL Holdings until 2008 and Melco Crown Entertainment until 2017, the division owns the Mocha Clubs gaming cafe business and several casino resorts, including City of Dreams Macau,

and

. As of 2016, the subsidiary's holdings included 3,000 hotel rooms, 60 food outlets, and 16,000 staff. Melco Resorts operates several subsidiaries in localized markets such as Cotai, Macau, and the Philippines."Melco delays Philippine tender offer, cancels delisting amid minority investor feud"
''

'', October 19, 2018 In Cyprus, Melco Resorts operates through the subsidiary ICR Holdings, which in turn consists of subsidiaries such as Integrated Casino Resorts Cyprus Limited and ICR Cyprus Resort Development Co. Limited."Melco increases shares in Cyprus project, holds 75 per cent stake"
''Macau Business'', Sheyla Zandonai, December 19, 2017 Macau-Morpheus-01

The first iteration of Melco Resorts was formed in 2004 as a joint venture between Melco and Publishing & Broadcasting Limited (PBL). In September 2006, the PBL-Melco venture spent US$900 million purchasing the last of Macau's six gaming licenses from

Wynn Resorts Wynn or wyn (; also spelled wen, ƿynn, and ƿen) is a letter of the Old English alphabet, where it is used to represent the sound . History The letter "W" While the earliest Old English texts represent this phoneme with the digraph , ...

, allowing for the operation of "an unlimited number of casinos, tables and machines in Macau until June 2022." In May 2007, the venture launched the casino resort Altira Macau (Crown Macau) in

Taipa Taipa ( zh, t=氹仔, ; pt, Taipa, ) was a former island in Macau, presently united with the island of Coloane by reclaimed land known as Cotai. Administratively, the boundaries of the traditional civil parish Freguesia de Nossa Senhora do ...

for $1.45 billion. Melco Crown then launched City of Dreams Macau in 2009 for $2.4 billion, with Melco PBL owning 66% of the development and appointing Hyatt International to operate two hotels at the location. The following year, City of Dreams Macau's ''House of Dancing Water'' attraction became "the most popular" show in Macao. On December 7, 2011, Melco Crown was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange's main board. The following year, Melco Crown acquired a majority share of Manchester International Holdings Unlimited Corporation, which was listed on the

Philippine Stock Exchange The Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc. ( fil, Pamilihang Sapi ng Pilipinas; ) is the national stock exchange of the Philippines. The exchange was created in 1992 from the merger of the Manila Stock Exchange and the Makati Stock Exchange. Includin ...

. Melco Crown began working on a new resort in 2012, the $1 billion casino resort City of Dreams Manila."Lawrence Ho aims at global casino business for Melco"
''

'', December 6, 2017 In 2015, Melco Crown opened its $3.2 billion Studio City Macau resort after acquiring a 60% interest in the

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

-themed development in 2011.About Crown: Summary of key businesses
at Crown Ltd official website Melco Crown had invested US$6.5 billion in Macau by July 2016, with Melco Crown receiving the CSR Gold Award at Business Awards of Macau in 2013 and 2017. In June 2017 the Cyprus government awarded the project company led by Melco group the first and only casino license in the country, granting a term of 30 years with exclusivity for 15 years. In September 2017,"Voluntary Announcement"
Melco International, September 11, 2017 Melco International subsequently obtained a majority stake in the City of Dreams Mediterranean Casino project,"Lawrence Ho: ‘All In’ Regarding the Casino in Cyprus"
''Gold News'', January 10, 2018 which is composed of up to four satellite casino premises in the country."Why This Company Is Betting on Tourists Flying to Cyprus From Around the World"
''

'', Georgios Gergiou, January 10, 2018 After Japanese lawmakers pushed for legalized gambling in integrated resorts, by 2017 Melco Resorts & Entertainment was bidding for one of an expected three licenses. In 2018 Melco Resorts opened

Morpheus Morpheus ('Fashioner', derived from the grc, μορφή meaning 'form, shape') is a god associated with sleep and dreams. In Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'' he is the son of Somnus and appears in dreams in human form. From the Middle Ages, the name b ...

, a $1.1 billion hotel tower designed by

Zaha Hadid Dame Zaha Mohammad Hadid ( ar, زها حديد ''Zahā Ḥadīd''; 31 October 1950 – 31 March 2016) was an Iraqi-British architect, artist and designer, recognised as a major figure in architecture of the late 20th and early 21st centu ...

, at City of Dreams Macau. In the spring of 2018, Melco Resorts revealed its Macau resorts would rely on databases instead of junket operators to market to VIP visitors.

List of developments

Melco International's major holdings include: *

(Macau) * City of Dreams Macau (Macau) **Morpheus"Casino designed by Zaha Hadid opens in Macau"
''

The Star ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'', June 17, 2018 **Nüwa *

(Macau) *Mocha Clubs (Macau) *

(Philippines)Chan, Kelvi
Macau's Melco in $1 billion Philippine casino project
''

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. new ...

'', 6 July 2012, at Yahoo! Finance

References

External links

* {{Crown Limited Companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange Conglomerate companies of Hong Kong Conglomerate companies of Macau Gambling companies of Macau Energy companies established in 1910 Entertainment companies established in 1910 1910 establishments in Hong Kong