EMPIRE RESORTS, INC. (NASDAQ:NYNY) Files An 8-K Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers

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EMPIRE RESORTS, INC. (NASDAQ:NYNY) Files An 8-K Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers
Item 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements for Certain Officers

On September18, 2017, the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Empire Resorts, Inc. (the “Company”), upon the recommendation of its Corporate Governance and Nominations Committee, appointed Ryan Eller and Gerard Lim to fill two vacancies on the Board and serve as directors until the 2017 annual meeting of stockholders or until their successors are elected and qualified. As of the date of this report, neither Mr.Eller nor Mr.Lim has been appointed to serve as a member of any Board committee.

Mr.Eller was appointed as the Company’s President and Chief Operating Officer effective March27, 2017 and was promoted to President and Chief Executive Officer on June1, 2017. Consistent with the Company’s compensation policy, Mr.Eller will not be separately compensated for his service as a director. The employment agreement entered into between the Company and Mr.Eller, dated March27, 2017, remains unchanged.

Mr.Lim serves as a director of Kien Huat Realty III Limited (“Kien Huat”), the Company’s largest stockholder. Since February 2009, Mr.Lim has served as general manager of Kien Huat Realty Sdn Berhad (“KHRSB”), which is a holding company that is a substantial shareholder of Genting Berhad. Genting Berhad is the holding company for the Genting Group, a multi-national conglomerate that includes, among other things, hospitality and casino holdings worldwide. Mr.Lim also serves as director of Golden Hope Limited (“Golden Hope”), which acts as trustee for an investment holding company that is an affiliate of Kien Huat. Such investment company for which Golden Hope serves as trustee is also a substantial shareholder of Genting Hong Kong Limited (formerly known as Star Cruises Limited) which is publicly traded in Hong Kong and Singapore. In his position as general manager of KHRSB and director of Golden Hope, and in his positions as director of various subsidiaries and affiliates of KHRSB and Golden Hope, Mr.Lim oversees the investments of KHRSB and Golden Hope in various concerns, including a ski resort, casino resorts, genomics, real estate and leisure life>

Consistent with the Company’s compensation policy, Mr.Lim shall be entitled to receive annual cash compensation of $50,000 for his service as a non-employee director, which for 2017, shall be pro-rated for his period of service in 2017. Additionally, Mr.Lim received a restricted stock grant of 875 shares relating to his services as a non-employee director in 2017, which shares shall vest in full on January5, 2018.

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About EMPIRE RESORTS, INC. (NASDAQ:NYNY)

Empire Resorts, Inc. is a holding company for various subsidiaries engaged in the hospitality and gaming industries. The Company, through Monticello Raceway Management, Inc. (MRMI), owns and operates Monticello Casino and Raceway, which is an approximately 40,000 square foot video gaming machine (VGM) and harness horseracing facility located in Monticello, New York, over 90 miles northwest of New York City. Monticello Casino and Raceway operates over 1,110 VGMs, which include approximately 1,070 video lottery terminals (VLTs) and over 40 electronic table game positions (ETGs). It is also engaged in pari-mutuel wagering on the running of live harness horse races, the import simulcasting of harness and thoroughbred horse races from racetracks across the country and internationally, and the export simulcasting of its races to offsite pari-mutuel wagering facilities. The Company, through Montreign Operating Company, LLC, holds a license to operate a resort casino.