SINGAPORE (Aug 26): Cityneon Holdings, which was delisted from the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and privatised earlier this year, has gotten a shot in the arm from the investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board.
Cityneon executive chairman and group CEO Ron Tan tells The Edge Singapore that EDBI’s share in the company will amount to about 2.3%.
The company creates licensed interactive exhibitions based on blockbuster entertainment franchises such as Hunger Games, Marvel's Avengers, Jurassic Park and the Transformers. They also work with governments on expos, and are in the events and exhibition space.
Under special purpose vehicle West Knighton, Tan and veteran Hong Kong entrepreneur Johnson Ko in October last year launched a mandatory unconditional cash offer for shares in the company. The $1.30 offer price valued the Cityneon at $318 million.
Cityneon was privatised in February this year.
See: Cityneon gets $1.30/share privatisation offer from chairman Ron Tan and HK investor
In May, CITIC Capital, a subsidiary of one of China's largest multinational conglomerate corporations, CITIC Group, acquired a 10.61% stake in the experiential entertainment firm.
The fresh funding from EDBI comes as Cityneon continues to expand into new markets, including Scotland, India, the United Arab Emirates, and China.
“We intend to step up our pace of expansion,” says Tan, adding that about 90% of the group’s profits currently come from outside of Singapore.
Cityneon will also expand its headquarters in Singapore. It is relocating group chief creative officer Welby Altidor to Singapore next year, and will establish a new creative office here in addition to the two in Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
"Internationalization and having a global perspective are Cityneon's key growth engines, and EDBI with their extensive network will add significant value to our expansion worldwide. Moreover, EDBI's strong knowledge and experience in emerging technologies will bring an important dimension which we can benefit by applying the latest innovations to enhance our experience entertainment," says Tan.
Chu Swee Yeok, chief executive officer and president of EDBI, says this investment aligns with EDBI’s mission to support high growth Singapore-based companies in their expansion plan.
“We are pleased that the company is building a new creative team in Singapore to develop multi-sensory experiential engagements, while further growing their international businesses in Asia and globally,” says Chu.
“The company will leverage EDBI's strong technology network for new innovations including mixed reality and consumer analytics to complement their good mastery of animatronics. We look forward to Cityneon's contributions to enhance Singapore's attractiveness as a destination for immersive events while strengthening our design capabilities,” she adds.
