Lao Holdings N.V. Files Legal Actions Related To Expropriation And Planned Sale Of Savan Vegas Casino Against The Lao Government And San Marco Capital Partners, LLC - Seite 2

Both actions filed under the Netherlands-Laos BIT are administered by the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes ("ICSID"), an agency affiliated with the World Bank. The first action, filed pursuant to the terms of the 2014 settlement agreement, alleges that the Lao Government materially breached the settlement agreement when it seized control over all of Lao Holdings' commercial properties in Laos, including the Savan Vegas Casino. Other acts alleged to materially breach the settlement agreement included the Lao Government's retroactive assessment of over US $70 million in taxes; its groundless pursuit of criminal allegations against Lao Holdings, Sanum, and affiliated individuals; its actions that will lead to a low-ball sale of Savan Vegas; and its stated intention to ensure that Lao Holdings does not receive any of the proceeds from the Savan Vegas sale. If the material breach application is successful, the ICSID Arbitration that Lao Holdings filed against Laos in 2012, which was intended to be resolved by the 2014 settlement agreement, will be revived. The amount of damages claims that will be at issue if the 2012 ICSID arbitration is revived is approximately US $890 million.

Lao Holdings' new action under the Netherlands-Laos BIT arises from the renewed efforts of the Lao Government to impose taxes on the Savan Vegas Casino that both provided the pretext for its seizure and will prevent it from being sold for a fair market price. This new action also concerns the Lao Government's unlawful admitted expropriation of the Casino and other recent acts taken with the effect and intent of depriving Sanum and Lao Holdings of the benefits of any of their investments in Laos.

The third action, pursued in the United States, has been commenced against San Marco Capital Partners, LLC as well as its sole owner and employee Kelly Gass. The action alleges that both San Marco and Ms. Gass are responsible for the current mismanagement of and botched sale efforts of the Casino. San Marco and Ms. Gass, were paid nearly $2 million from revenues generated by the Savan Vegas Casino, to faithfully serve as fiduciaries to the owners of that facility (i.e. Sanum and the Lao Government) in managing the Casino and other gaming operations. The complaint states that Gass purported to know "how to run and sell" these assets but, instead, "Gass has served only [Sanum and Lao Holdings'] adversary, the [Lao Government], a corrupt and totalitarian regime that admittedly expropriated Plaintiffs' assets in Laos with Gass's cooperation and assistance." The Complaint also charges that "[u]nder Gass's management, the financial reporting is opaque at best; the only thing that is clear is millions of dollars of unexplained disbursements, while the 80% shareholder receives nothing."