HONG KONG // A Hong Kong tycoon has placed the biggest ever order for Rolls-Royce cars.
Stephen Hung has bought 30 Phantoms to chauffeur guests at a luxury resort he is building in the global gambling capital of Macau.
The US$20 million (Dh73.5m) purchase surpasses the 14 Phantoms bought by Hong Kong’s Peninsula Hotel in 2006.
Mr Hung and Rolls-Royce executives signed the deal on Tuesday at the company’s Goodwood factory in England.
The Extended Wheelbase Phantoms will be used for guests at Mr Hung’s “ultra-luxury” Louis XIII hotel, which is scheduled to open in early 2016.
Rolls-Royce said two of the cars will be the most expensive Phantoms ever commissioned, complete with “gold-plated trimmings” on the outside and interior.
Louis XIII Holdings said it will pay the automaker a $2m deposit, an additional $3m by the end of the year and the remaining $15m when the cars are delivered in the first half of 2016.
The Phantom’s base price in Britain is about $734,000 including taxes, a Rolls-Royce spokesman said.
Prices may vary by market and many buyers order custom features that push prices much higher. Customers have previously spent more than $1m on bespoke models.
With casino revenues of $45 billion last year, Macau is the world’s most lucrative gambling market, outpacing the Las Vegas Strip seven times over.
After authorities ended a casino monopoly a decade ago, newly wealthy mainland Chinese high rollers started pouring in to wager at glitzy new resorts built by foreign operators such as Las Vegas Sands and Wynn Resorts.
However, the boom is beginning to fade as Chinese president Xi Jinping’s corruption crackdown starts to bite, putting a dampener on lavish spending by officials and other wealthy Chinese.
Macau’s gambling revenues fell 6 per cent in August – the third straight month of annual decline after five years of uninterrupted growth.
Mr Hung, a former investment banker, is known for his flamboyant style and the resort looks to be the flashiest of the wave of expansion projects now under construction in the tiny Chinese territory near Hong Kong.
Named after the French king who started building the famed Palace of Versailles, the resort will boast a 1,860 square metre villa billed as the world’s “most extravagant” hotel suite that will reportedly cost $130,000 a night.
Mr Hung has even enlisted a descendant of Louis XIII to help with the hotel’s design, based on French Renaissance and Baroque styling.
* Associated Press
EA Sports FC 25
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Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
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Citizenship-by-investment programmes
United Kingdom
The UK offers three programmes for residency. The UK Overseas Business Representative Visa lets you open an overseas branch office of your existing company in the country at no extra investment. For the UK Tier 1 Innovator Visa, you are required to invest £50,000 (Dh238,000) into a business. You can also get a UK Tier 1 Investor Visa if you invest £2 million, £5m or £10m (the higher the investment, the sooner you obtain your permanent residency).
All UK residency visas get approved in 90 to 120 days and are valid for 3 years. After 3 years, the applicant can apply for extension of another 2 years. Once they have lived in the UK for a minimum of 6 months every year, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency (called Indefinite Leave to Remain). After one year of ILR, the applicant can apply for UK passport.
The Caribbean
Depending on the country, the investment amount starts from $100,000 (Dh367,250) and can go up to $400,000 in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take between four to five months to receive a passport.
Portugal
The investment amount ranges from €350,000 to €500,000 (Dh1.5m to Dh2.16m) in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take a maximum of six months to receive a Golden Visa. Applicants can apply for permanent residency after five years and Portuguese citizenship after six years.
“Among European countries with residency programmes, Portugal has been the most popular because it offers the most cost-effective programme to eventually acquire citizenship of the European Union without ever residing in Portugal,” states Veronica Cotdemiey of Citizenship Invest.
Greece
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Greece is €250,000, making it the cheapest real estate residency visa scheme in Europe. You can apply for residency in four months and citizenship after seven years.
Spain
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Spain is €500,000. You can apply for permanent residency after five years and citizenship after 10 years. It is not necessary to live in Spain to retain and renew the residency visa permit.
Cyprus
Cyprus offers the quickest route to citizenship of a European country in only six months. An investment of €2m in real estate is required, making it the highest priced programme in Europe.
Malta
The Malta citizenship by investment programme is lengthy and investors are required to contribute sums as donations to the Maltese government. The applicant must either contribute at least €650,000 to the National Development & Social Fund. Spouses and children are required to contribute €25,000; unmarried children between 18 and 25 and dependent parents must contribute €50,000 each.
The second step is to make an investment in property of at least €350,000 or enter a property rental contract for at least €16,000 per annum for five years. The third step is to invest at least €150,000 in bonds or shares approved by the Maltese government to be kept for at least five years.
Candidates must commit to a minimum physical presence in Malta before citizenship is granted. While you get residency in two months, you can apply for citizenship after a year.
Egypt
A one-year residency permit can be bought if you purchase property in Egypt worth $100,000. A three-year residency is available for those who invest $200,000 in property, and five years for those who purchase property worth $400,000.
Source: Citizenship Invest and Aqua Properties
