Billionaire Enrique Razon plans to invest in the casino venture of businessman Dennis Uy, a longtime supporter of President Rodrigo Duterte.

According to Filipino billionaire Enrique Razon’s Bloomberry Resorts Corp., a term sheet with a PH Resorts unit has been signed in order to spell out the terms of its proposed investment in casino resorts. Set in the provinces of Cebu and Pampanga⁠—north of Manila⁠—these developments are owned by Dennis Uy, a longtime supporter of President Rodrigo Duterte.

In a stock exchange filing on Wednesday, May 11, PH Resorts—the parent company of PH Travel and Leisure Holdings Corporation (PHTLC)—said that Bloomberry will be investing in Emerald Bay Resort Hotel and Casino in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, along with Clark Grand Leisure Corporation, the company behind the development of The Base Resort Hotel and Casino in Clark.

Following this news, the shares of Uy’s PH Resorts Group Holdings Inc. saw an 18% jump intraday before losing 5% at the close. On the other hand, Bloomberry’s shares went up as high as 8.2%.

A Helping Hand

However, some details still need to be ironed out between the two parties. “Certain terms and conditions of the transaction, including the method of payment and timing of closing, are still to be finalized,” PH Resorts and Bloomberry explained.

Since last year, PH Resorts has been struggling with its capital requirements to build the two casinos. Due to uncertainties in the gaming industry amid the COVID-19 pandemic last October 2021, Uy’s PH Resorts announced that it suspended the development of its resorts in Clark Global City. Meanwhile, last November 2021, it said that it was in talks with lenders to get additional debt and defer payments.

PH Resorts added that it would instead “focus all efforts” on constructing Emerald Bay in Cebu.

Bloomberry is the owner and operator of Solaire Resort and Casino in Parañaque City, while PH Resorts is the holding company for the gaming and hospitality arm of Uy’s Udenna Group. Other than the developments in Cebu and Clark, it is also the owner of the Donatela Resort and Sanctuary in Panglao, Bohol.