Macau casino SJM delays trading debut amid family feud

By Joseph Chaney and Kennix Chim

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Macau casino operator SJM won a court case on Wednesday that had threatened to scupper its Hong Kong listing, but delayed its market debut by a week and offered to give investors their money back as a family feud rumbled on.

Company founder Stanley Ho has been trying to cash in on investor interest in the gambling boom in Macau, a southern Chinese territory where gaming revenues have overtaken those of Las Vegas.

But his estranged sister Winnie Ho has filed more than 30 lawsuits against him in recent years, and has been trying to block the scaled-back $494 million initial public offering by Sociedade de Jogos de Macau (SJM).

In a last-minute challenge in Hong Kong's high court, her lawyers argued that regulators had failed to take into account her Macau legal cases against the transfer of assets to SJM for the IPO from its parent, the Stanley Ho-controlled Sociedade de Turismo e Diversoes de Macau (STDM).

But ruling against the challenge, the judge said STDM could still repossess its assets if Winnie Ho's Macau legal challenges were successful, whether or not SJM's listing went ahead.

Amid the legal uncertainty, SJM released a statement saying the listing would be delayed by six days until July 16, adding that successful share applicants could choose to get their money back.

Winnie Ho's spokeswoman said shortly before the ruling that she would appeal if it did not go in her favor.

The former monopoly is losing market share to the likes of Las Vegas Sands (LVS.N: Quote, Profile, Research), MGM Mirage (MGM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Wynn Resorts (WYNN.O: Quote, Profile, Research), newcomers in Macau's booming gaming industry.