Macao casino magnate Stanley Ho (R), his daughter Sabrina (C) and his wife Angela leave the house of his third wife Chan Un-chan in Hong Kong, Jan 26, 2011. Ho backtracked from an accusation that his family had stolen shares in his business empire, saying on Tuesday the dispute was a result of a "misunderstanding". [Photo/Agencies]

HONG KONG - Casino magnate Stanley Ho, chairman of SJM Holdings Ltd , hopes to resolve a family feud over company assets without going to court, he said in his first public comments on the controversy on Wednesday.

Speaking at a family residence to television station TVB, Ho said the controversy over his assets had made him and his family unhappy.

"The statement from last night has already taken effect and won't change," Ho said, referring to a statement which stated his desire to resolve the matter with his family privately and that he had in fact authorised the asset transfers which effectively whittled down his assets to nothing.

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"For the past 10 years I have very much loved my family and I have never had to take any action of you sueing me and me sueing you," he said during the interview in which he sat in a large armchair flanked by his third wife Chan Un-Chan and a daughter.

Dressed in a grey sweater, Ho, 89, spoke in a slow, slightly laboured and slurred manner, but otherwise appeared calm.

Shares in Stanley Ho's SJM Holdings Ltd had earlier dived on Wednesday on fears a family feud between the billionaire chairman and some of his 17 known children would affect succession plans at Macau's largest casino operator.

On Tuesday, Ho's lawyer Gordon Oldham quoted him as accusing members of his family of stealing shares in his business empire, leaving him with a highly diluted stake. Ho later backtracked from his claims, saying the dispute was the result of a "misunderstanding" he wanted to sort out in private.

Wednesday's interview with Ho was the first time the tycoon directly clarified his position since the controversy flared up earlier this week. He later read from a prepared statement which stated that "I never wanted to sue" while reaffirming that he was dismissing his Oldham as lawyer.

The public back and forth between Ho and family members is adding to uncertainty over succession plans for the $10 billion casino company, which until 2002 held a lucrative monopoly on gambling in the former Portuguese colony.

Shares in SJM, which had been suspended from trade on Tuesday, fell as much as 8.8 percent and last traded down 5.1 percent at HK$13.10.

Analysts said that while the dispute would undoubtedly weigh on the company's shares, which hit a record high last week, it was unlikely to significantly impact management and operations.

"There is no reason to think that the current kerfuffle will impact SJM's existing businesses over the near term. The brands in Macau remain very strong," said RBS analyst Philip Tulk.

He cautioned that the company's plans on Cotai Strip, a glitzy hub of neon lights now home to casinos such as Las Vegas Sands' giant Venetian Macau resort, could come under scrutiny.

In a statement on Tuesday, SJM's board of directors said the change in shareholding structure of holding company Lanceford, whose shareholders include Ho's third wife and five children by his second wife, would have no direct impact on SJM.

Despite Ho's direct clarification that he didn't need his lawyer, Gordon Oldham, to follow up with anything, Oldham himself continued to maintain that he hadn't yet been instructed to halt legal action against Ho's family.

Since the octogenarian's health deteriorated following brain surgery in 2009, speculation has swirled over the risks of a succession battle among the four women publicly recognised as his wives and at least 17 known children.