Macau-based electronic gaming equipment supplier Asia Pioneer Entertainment (APE) is planning to expand into the United States and at least two new Southeast Asian markets in 2019, according to the company’s Chairman Allen Huie.
Speaking to Inside Asian Gaming at MGS Entertainment Show this week, Huie said that the company was exploring a range of new opportunities for the year ahead and was already deep in discussions with operators in Cambodia and the Philippines to supply its slot machine and eGaming products.
“The second half of the year has been doing very well and in 2019, aside from maintaining our market share in Macau, we are expanding into Southeast Asia,” he said.
“Strategically we are expanding further into the region. We are in the process of doing a deal in Cambodia and also the Philippines so we are on the radar for 2019. We should be doing our first transactions next month.”
APE is also reaching out beyond Asia for the first time.
“Of course Southeast Asia is very important but we are working with our supplier partners and we are looking at the US market,” Huie said. “Particularly for ETGs, the US is a big market.
“We’ve already started conducting studies on that and it is probably nine months away depending on how long it takes to get approvals.”
Wednesday saw APE celebrate the one-year anniversary of commencement of trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange following the completion of an initial public offering in November 2017.