MELCO INT'L DEV (00200) plans to transfer knowledge intellectual property platform to Studio City for $375 million.

MELCO INT'L DEV (00200) announced on April 30, 2026, that the company's wholly-owned subsidiary, MI IP Licensing Services 1 Limited, intends to sell MI IP Licensing Services 2 Limited to MCO (IP) Holdings Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Melco Resorts & Entertainment, for a price of 375 million US dollars, to be paid in cash. The target company is an intellectual property holding entity within the group. The target company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company (via the seller). After completion, the target company will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Melco Resorts & Entertainment (via the buyer). As of the date of this announcement, the company holds approximately 56.32% of the issued shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment. Through this transaction, the company will hold approximately 56.32% equity interest in the target company through its shareholding in Melco Resorts & Entertainment, resulting in a net sale of approximately 43.68% of the company's equity in the target company. The main assets of the target company are the trademarks, which consist of a basket of intellectual property assets, including trademarks, service marks, brands, logos, commercial appearances, trade names, and other similar indications of source or origin, as well as domain names held by the Melco Resorts & Entertainment group in multiple operating jurisdictions (including Macau, the Philippines, Cyprus, and other regions). The trademarks and features include "Melco," "," "Morpheus," "," and related brand names and designs. The board of directors believes that by transferring the target company (and thereby the trademarks) to the Melco Resorts & Entertainment group, the trademarks can be placed within the holding entity of Melco Resorts & Entertainment group (the main operating platform for the group's leisure, gaming, and entertainment business) to streamline and simplify the group's intellectual property structure. By aligning ownership with the operating entities using the trademarks in the integrated resort business, this will facilitate more effective management, protection, and enforcement of the trademarks in multiple jurisdictions, allowing the company to continue benefiting from the value and development of the trademarks through its approximately 56.32% equity stake in Melco Resorts & Entertainment.