Casino operator Donaco International has entered a new agreement with Mega International Commercial Bank Co. Ltd. To refinance its current term loan facility.

The Australian Stock Exchange-listed company announced in a filing that it had taken out a new loan of US$57 million, with the term “extended to three years from the date of drawdown,” which is expected to happen in late August.

In 2015, Donaco International, which operates casinos in Vietnam and Cambodia, loaned US$100 million from Mega Bank. A year later, the company took a further US$20 million to repay a separate working capital facility.

Donaco said it has repaid a total of US$63.4 million in the past two years, leaving the remaining principal amount standing at US$56.6 million, which originally needs to be paid within the next 12 months. According to the company, it needs to pay Mega Bank US$20.8 million in January 2018, while the remaining US$35.8 million is due in July 2018.

Tribal casinos are great partners in nation-building – only if states will have a harmonious relationship with the operators.

Case in point are the contrasting events in Florida and New York, where one is benefiting from the revenues from tribal casinos while the other not so much.

The Miami Herald reported that Florida is reaping the rewards of striking a new gambling deal with the Seminole Tribe.

With the new law, economist pointed out that Florida is looking at 4.5 percent growth in its main budget during the fiscal year that ends next June. That could grow even further to 4.1 percent in fiscal year 2018-19.

Bitcoin infrastructure company Blockstream is embarking on an ambitious project to bring bitcoin to all corners of the world.

On Tuesday, the company announced that it plans to transmit bitcoin from space across the world using satellite technology. The project is called Blockstream Satellite, which will use leased satellites to broadcast real-time bitcoin transactions and blocks from a group of satellites in space, enabling everyone—even those who are disconnected from the internet—to participate in bitcoin.

“With the service, everyone will have free access to the bitcoin network, in any corner of the world, including the estimated 4 billion people not currently connected to the internet, due to lack of availability or affordability,” Blockstream CEO Adam Back said in a blog post.

Currently, bitcoin users in Africa, Europe, South America and North America can already use the satellites to download a bitcoin node via the service’s beta version. Blockstream plans to add more countries to the list by the end of the year.

The Philippines gaming revenue may have risen an average of nearly 24 percent over the past few years but somehow, this Southeast Asian island nation is finding it difficult to lure big name western investors to bet in the country.

According to The Wall Street Journal report, the Philippines’ problem lies in its credibility and transparency.

The series of unfortunate events in the country – such as the deadly Resorts World Manila arson attack and the abduction of a Singaporean woman from a casino – illustrate the poor state of regulation and security in the Philippine casino market, according to analysts.

“The credibility, the transparency is just not there to satisfy the requirements of most international investor operators,” Ben Lee, managing partner of Macau-based IGamiX Management & Consulting, said, according to the news report.

Canadian private equity fund Clairvest Group has reported a net loss of C$11.6 million (US$9.1 million) for first quarter of fiscal 2018, courtesy of potential losses in its investment in Indian online rummy company Ace2Three.

In April, the Toronto-based company and its partners acquired a majority stake in Head Infotech, the company that operates the online rummy site, for an estimated US$73.7 million. Clairvest’s portion of the investment reached C$22.9 million (US$17.96 million) in the form of compulsory convertible debentures and common shares.

Ace2Three, however, was shut down for nine days in June after the Indian state of Telangana announced a new ordinance outlawing betting and gambling through the internet. The ordinance covers games such as online matka, sports betting, poker and rummy in the state.

Clairvest said the ordinance resulted in a C$1 (US$0.78) per share of unrealized loss in Ace2Three.

Maryland’s newest casino continues to dominate the state revenues game, posting a revenue over $50 million in four of the past five months.

Data from Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control showed that state’s six casinos extended its gains in July 2017, raking in $138.76 million in revenue. The figure was 36 percent higher compared to the July 2016 number of $103.85 million.

July’s data was also an improvement from the previous month, when the state reported a gaming revenue of $130.5 million. But excluding MGM National Harbor, statewide casino revenue in July 2017 decreased by $15,865,020, or 15.3%.

Speaking of MGM National Harbor, the state’s largest casino remained at the top of Maryland’s revenues chart, generating $50.8 million from both slot machines and table games in July.