Author: Admin VietNamGaming

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Nepal attracts hotel investors, new casino

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

Nepal has not lost its allure for international hotel groups, who recognize its potential as a playground for India, with at least two new arrivals announced in recent weeks.

India’s Lemon Tree Hotels has reached an agreement to operate a hotel in Biratnagar, the country’s industrial capital. This will be the third signing for India’s biggest mid-priced hotel chain and boasts a casino being built next door to the property as a unique selling point.

“Nepal is not just a country with which we, as a nation, have close personal ties, but is also a region that we feel holds immense business and tourism potential, with its scenic locales and stunning mountains,” said Lemon Tree Deputy Managing Director Rattan Keswani. “The planned casino, which will be built adjacent to the hotel, will be an added USP and provide an exclusive offering for our guests.”

This is Lemon Tree’s third signing in India and adds to its offering in Nagarkot and the capital Kathmandu. The Biratnagar hotel will open in 2023 and will have about 80 rooms and suites, as well as a selection of restaurants, a spa swimming pool and fitness centre.

The company gave no further details about the casino.

Nepal’s casino industry is one of the oldest in Asia, but has been through a rocky few years, including recovery from a major earthquake in 2015. The country has attracted the attention of casino operators due to its proximity to India, where locals are not permitted to gamble.

As well as Indians, Nepal has seen growing international business travel as part of the recovery efforts from the earthquake, which prior to the pandemic shutdowns was another factor driving growth.

India’s biggest casino company, Delta Corp, in January last year was awarded a license to run a casino in the Marriott Hotel in Kathmandu and has said it is interested in becoming a major player in the market, while several other Indian investors are behind the capital’s casinos.

In January this year, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts made its debut in the market with the newly opened 90-room Ramada Encore by Wyndham Kathmandu-Thamel.

Announcing the opening, Nikhil Sharma, regional director for Eurasia said the company has plans for another 30 properties in South Asia by 2025.

Source: AGBrief

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More Covid setbacks for Asian jurisdictions

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

It’s not been a good week for anyone hoping for a faster opening of travel markets around Asia, with the Philippines, Cambodia and Hong Kong all reporting setbacks.

The Philippine government has announced that it is banning the entry of foreigners from March 20 to April 19 after a surge in new cases, including the discovery of new variants in the country.

The ban will include Filipinos working overseas, but there will be some exceptions for returning foreign government officials and their families and humanitarian cases.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the temporary travel restriction is stipulated under National Task Force (NTF) Against Covid-19

“We need to implement this decisive action to prevent the further spread of this virus and its new variants,” Roque was cited as saying by the government news agency.

The Civil Aeronautics Board has mandated that no more than 1,500 international arrivals should come through the main airport in Manila a day and any airline breaking this capacity level will face sanctions.

The Philippines was one of the hardest hit last year in terms of declines in gross gambling revenue, recording a drop of about 90 percent in 2020. The borders were closed to international travel and while Filipinos are allowed to gamble at home, the country’s casinos in Entertainment City were only able to open under strict operating conditions. The properties could only cater to selected guests and long-term hotel residents.

Elsewhere in Asia, Cambodia is still struggling to get grip on an outbreak stemming from Feb. 20 when four Chinese tourists allegedly bribed security guards in the Sokha Hotel to break quarantine and go on a spree of entertainment venues in the capital.

The result has been the worst outbreak of Covid seen in Cambodia, which has been one of the most effective nations in curbing the spread of the disease.

The government so far has not imposed a national lockdown, but has been forced to shut down six provinces as clusters emerge. There were 75 more cases linked to the Feb. 20 incident on Wednesday, taking its total to 1,505. The majority of those — 990 — have been in the past month. Only one person has died in the country.

According to local media, one of the worst hit areas at present is Kandal province.

Kandal houses casinos and entertainment centres which employ significant numbers of people and has now become the country’s 2rd largest province for COVID-19 positive cases after Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville.

NagaCorp’s Nagaworld shut its doors again on March 1 after 11 employees tested positive, while elsewhere the picture is mixed.

Sihanoukville, another major casino centre, has been effectively closed to travel, although the town itself has not been locked down as a whole, with closures affecting selected properties.

JinBei, one of the largest, was given permission to reopen this week.

Elsewhere, Hong Kong cases are also going in the wrong direction after a cluster at a gym used by expats and at HSBC’s headquarters. The rise has dampened hopes for an imminent opening of borders with Macau, which gets 10 to 15 percent of its GGR from its neighbour.

Source: AGBrief

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Effectiveness of Western Australia gaming regulators under review

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

The terms of reference issued to the Royal Commission in relation to the Crown Resorts affair make it clear that the effectiveness of the Australian state’s Gaming and Wagering Commission is also under review.

The Royal Commission, of course, has been established by the state government of Western Australia to look into the revelations that emerged in the course of the Bergin suitability assessment in New South Wales. The terms of reference cite three major issues: the facilitation of money laundering, disregard for the welfare of the company’s China-based staff, and the formation of relationships with junket operators linked to organized crime.

While these matters are similar to the mandate of the Victoria Royal Commission, the Western Australia version does something that the Victoria government has refused to do, which is to look into the question of why its own regulators had apparently missed for so long what the Bergin inquiry had revealed.

Specifically, the commission is to examine “the adequacy of the existing regulatory framework in relation to casinos and casino gaming in Western Australia to address extant and emerging strategic risks identified in the Bergin Report, or otherwise by this inquiry, including in relation to junket operations, money laundering, cash and electronic transactions and the risk of infiltration by criminal elements into casino operations.”

It adds that Royal Commission should look into “the capability and effectiveness of the Gaming and Wagering Commission in discharging its regulatory functions and responsibilities, and the Department in supporting the Gaming and Wagering Commission, including in relation to identifying and addressing any actual or perceived conflicts of interest by officers
involved in casino regulation.”

So while Crown Resorts is facing a review of whether or not it should be able to continue holding a casino license for Crown Perth, the Gaming and Wagering Commission is potentially facing an even more profound shakeup.

One consequence is that while Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews is still facing accusations that he is more interested in political damage control than getting to the bottom of what went wrong with Crown Resorts (as witnessed in Victorian Shadow Attorney-General Ed O’Donohue’s claim that Andrews was “dragged kicking and screaming” to hold his own state’s Royal Commission), Western Australia’s state government is less likely to be seen in the same light.

Source: AGBrief

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Macau weekly GGR creeps 6% higher

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

Macau gross gambling revenue is creeping higher, but hopes for a near-term boost from a reopening with Hong Kong may have faded after a new cluster of Covid-19 the latter city.

Macau’s average daily rate (ADR) of gambling revenue was about $34 million in the most recent week of March, up 6 percent on the prior week, according to Bernstein Research.

March month-to-date ADR is down 68 percent from the same period in 2019, but is up 1 percent from February this year.

China is still dragging its feet on reinstating the ability to apply for individual visit scheme visas electronically, which all industry watchers say will be a key catalyst for growth. It has given no indication when e-visas, or group visas, will be permitted despite lobbying from Macau officials in Beijing.

Another potential driver would be a reopening with Hong Kong, which accounts for about 10 to 15 percent of Macau’s revenue. Hong Kong had managed to reduce its caseload to about 24 in a seven-day average period, from 129 cases a day last July.

However, there was a setback this weekend due to an outbreak linked to a gym used by expats. Bernstein notes there were 60 cases recorded on March 12 and 47 on March 13.

“The city has reduced some social distancing measures since February, but a spike in new cases may derail the loosening in the short term,” it said, adding it doesn’t expect travel to Macau to resume until late Q1, but more likely in Q2.

Due to the ongoing travel and visa restrictions, Bernstein doesn’t expect to see a meaningful recovery until the second half of the year. However, it does expect that recovery will be significant in the latter half.

For March as a whole, the firm is expecting a decline in the mid-sixties percent from 2019. In the full year, it’s forecasting that GGR will reach about two thirds of its 2019 levels, lead by the mass market, which will recover to 75 percent of what it was. The VIP market is expected to be weaker, only getting to half of its prior levels.

Source: AGBrief

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Las Vegas Sands CEO Rob Goldstein reiterates interest in Asia expansion

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

Las Vegas Sands Corp CEO Rob Goldstein has reiterated his interest in potentially expanding their operations in Asia, other parts of the U.S. and digitally, using the proceeds from their recent Las Vegas property sale.

During the J.P. Morgan Gaming, Lodging, Restaurant and Leisure Management Access Forum 2021, Goldstein explained the reasonings behind selling their properties in Las Vegas.

“Las Vegas is a small part of our business. 90 percent plus of our EBITDA resides in Asia.”

Goldstein said the company felt that holding the assets in Vegas would freeze up capital in a market they felt would be a lot tougher to grow EBITDA.

Turning to Asia, the chief executive was particularly optimistic about Macau and Singapore.

“I believe the Macau government as part of its license renewal process will come to us and ask us to spend large capital dollars to grow our business. And we’re delighted to spend as much as they want.”

Goldstein noted that the Londoner is now close to completion.

“We believe Macau is a big growth market for us… we’d love to deploy more capital in that market.

In Singapore, Goldstein held similar optimism, stemming from their contract with the government to expand its business there. “That’s a two billion dollar plus and growing market.”

Outside of those two markets, Goldstein said the company will be on the lookout for “other” markets in Asia but did not specify where they were looking. The company made the decision to pull out of the IR race in Japan last year.

“As much as we’re fond of Las Vegas, that’s close to our hearts, the ability to redeploy capital at a much higher return is hard to turn down. It gives us a ridiculous balance sheet, far beyond what we got pre-pandemic and the ability to look also to perhaps New York, Texas, Asia.”

Finally, Goldstein reiterated the company’s interest in expanding on the digital gaming front, however, said they will take a cautious and calculated approach to enter the market.

When asked whether the sale of its Las Vegas properties was partially influenced by Macau’s concession renewal process – as the company would have less of a US presence, Goldstein denied it having anything to do with the decision.

“We didn’t sell with that intent, it was not our goal… We have spent a lot of time in Macau and have done it very thoughtfully…. We have full confidence in our Macau licenses and I think we will be in Macau for many decades to come.”

“This idea that we did it to free up from the U.S., or someone wrote that we did it so we can proceed without regulatory scrutiny, that’s not true. We are a U.S. company, we pay taxes here, we reside here. We’re going to be the same high regulated, very, very careful company we’ve always been. It wasn’t done to make the Chinese government say, Gee Whiz.”

Source: AGBrief

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Macau officials lobby Beijing for greater travel opening

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

Senior Macau officials have been busy lobbying the Chinese government for a further easing of travel restrictions to enable more visitation to Macau during two key political gatherings in Beijing.

The officials were in Beijing for the annual session of China’s rubber-stamp parliament the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

During the event, Macau Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng gave an interview to a major Chinese news agency suggesting that Macau deserved more tourism.

“Because we have done a good job of preventing the pandemic, friends from mainland China can come to Macau [to travel],” he said in a video interview published by China News Service and picked up by Lusa.

Mainland Chinese have been able to return to Macau since Sept. 23, but the travel restrictions are onerous, including a negative PCR test. Also, China has not resumed the issuance of e-visas, which is causing bottlenecks and hindering a more meaningful recovery to visitation.

There was a further setback in late January after Beijing shut down several of its cities due to renewed Covid clusters, as a result, the key Chinese New Year period was slower than had been initially hoped. However, the last two days of the holiday improved.

Macau’s economy, with its heavy reliance on gaming tourism, has been one of the worst hit in the world due to the impact of the pandemic, with gross domestic product falling 56.3 percent last year. Its borders remain closed to visitors from outside Mainland China.

Also this week, 12 deputies from Macau called for the reinstatement of electronic processing of individual visit scheme visas as quickly as possible – something analysts aren’t expecting for several more months.

According to a Chinese language newspaper cited by Lusa, the deputies called for “convenient arrangements for residents of the interior of China to apply online for Macau Individual Visas visas and for the application of self-service and immediate issuance of on-site visas with immigration authorities.”

They also call for the resumption of group tours.

The recovery in Macau’s gross gambling revenue has been slow and lead primarily by the premium mass segment. Analysts have noted that the mass grind will not return without the resumption of group visas.

In a further lobbying effort, Alex Lao Nga Wong a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), tabled a motion urging that the requirement for a negative Covid certificate be waived for those who can prove they have been vaccinated.

Source: AGBrief

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Sharp fall in number of Macau gaming industry workers

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

In the final five months of 2020 there was a steep 86.6 percent fall in the number of new hires within Macau’s gaming industry. That meant that only 174 new employees were hired during the entire stretch.

This information released by the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) underlined the impact of the Covid pandemic on Macau’s economy and society.

The total number of people employed full-time in the gaming sector decreased by 1,612 workers, bringing the total number of registered gaming workers to 56,613 by year’s end.

Full-time employees in the gaming sector also saw their average monthly earnings fall by 4.9 percent in 2020 to MOP23,440 (US$3,047).

Separately, the Macau Federation of Trade Unions has reported that about 55 percent of the local employees surveyed reported that their company has adopted some kind of unpaid leave or care leave measures in the past three months. The gaming sector was among the hardest hit in this respect.

Last year a total of 5.8 million visitors arrived in Macau, compared to the record 40 million arrivals in 2019. Combined GGR was down nearly 80 percent for the full year.

Source: AGBrief

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Online gambling outflow from Philippines seen as stabilizing

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

The outflow of online gambling operators from the Philippines is expected to slow, at least for the time being, following amendments to tax regulations and due to uncertainties in neighbouring jurisdictions.

Taxation of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) has become a politically contentious issue after legislators sought to squeeze more revenue out of the companies to make up for budget shortfalls caused by the pandemic.

An attempt to impose a 5 percent franchise tax on overall turnover last year was met with howls of protest from the industry, with many choosing to vote with their feet and leaving the country in droves. The tax added to already rising costs of doing business in the Philippines at a time the firms had also been forced to shut up shop due to Covid.

That tax was suspended in January following a petition to the Supreme Court from foreign gaming groups, but swiftly reintroduced in February. This time however, there is a crucial difference. It will now be 5 percent of gross gambling revenue and not total turnover.

“It is more “acceptable” but still ridiculously high,” said Danny Too, general manager of Cherry Interactive. “That is why everything is still very much “negotiable,” though I don’t foresee an immediate exodus of all the POGO operators from the Philippines.”

Too said the House of Representatives has already given its final approval for the new tax and the bill will now be transmitted to the Senate, where it must undergo another three successful readings before being sent to President Rodrigo Duterte for a final signature.

The 5 percent tax is payable to the national government and only applies to master operators and not service providers. The firms will still need to pay all applicable fees and charges to the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Association (PAGCOR).

There is also a 25 percent withholding tax on the income of POGO employees.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue has said it expects tax collections from POGOs to be just PHP3.93 billion this year, which is half the PHP7.18 billion raised in 2020.

BIR Deputy Commissioner Arnel Guballa said this is based on January revenue of PHP327.2 million multiplied by 12 months.

His estimate is more downbeat than that of PAGCOR Chair Andrea Domingo, who at the end of last year predicted POGO revenue would return to 2019 levels by Q2 of this year. She said the situation had stabilized with companies leaving the country and that the regulator was in discussions with four potential new entrants.

The number of POGO license holders that are currently operating is just 33 compared with 61 prior to the Covid crisis, as of February 23, according to PAGCOR’s website.

Philippines-based iGaming consultant Mark Gilbert agreed any further departures will not be due to taxation if the bill goes through in its current form. Though there are still major issues facing the sector.

“A more prevalent issue for POGOs is personnel. As long as the Philippine government continues to restrict foreign access into the country, POGOs cannot fill backlogged positions requiring specific lingual skills, payments experience or customer acquisition background,” he said. “Thus, POGOs are looking at other countries where entry is not as restrictive, such as Dubai or Malaysia, to set up shop.”

Many Mainland Chinese fled the country during the first wave of the pandemic to return to China, which was seen as a more secure location from a health perspective. That said, there is significant uncertainty as to how many workers POGOs are employing and how many of them are foreign nationals.

PAGCOR has reported the number of POGO employees as standing at about 118,000, although Senator Ralph Recto estimates that the number is at least three times that amount at about 470,000. He bases his estimates on surveys of property in Metro Manila and contributions made to the Department of Finance, among others.

The Philippines Inquirer cited Dominique Tutay, Assistant Secretary at the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), as saying more than 200,000 Pogo workers have been issued alien working permits in the last two years.

Another factor slowing the departures from Manila is uncertainty over other potential jurisdictions. February’s coup in Myanmar has significantly changed the outlook for that country’s burgeoning iGaming hubs, while officially online gambling remains banned in Cambodia.

Malaysia is another option that has been actively considered, although ongoing political uncertainty in that country is also clouding its potential and hopes for some kind of regulation in the near term.

As a result, remaining in the Philippines becomes a case of better the devil you know.

Source: AGBrief

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SkyCity CEO sees future in convergence

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

SkyCity Entertainment Group chief executive Michael Ahearne says the future lies in online and land-based gaming convergence, a comment he has made after two years of leading the company’s online efforts.

“If you look at all industry and sectors, particularly retail sectors, you’re seeing a transition from consumers moving from traditional bricks and mortar, whether its a retail shopping or a retail experience, into wanting to consume the product digitally, and our sector is no different.”

“We’re seeing that global movement over many years – including accelerated growth in online sports betting and online casinos, particularly in Europe. The U.S. is another market that has been actively looking at regulating this sector. This reflects the consumer segment, customers looking to experience more products digitally.”

Ahearne, who spearheaded the launch of SkyCity’s online gaming initiative in 2019, comes from a background of companies with successful digital businesses, including Aristocrat and PaddyPower Betfair, a leader in technology and online sports betting and gaming.

“It came to light that there was a significant amount of New Zealanders playing online casino games. Which is perfectly legal for New Zealanders to do, and legal for offshore operators to offer the product, but there’s no mechanism for an onshore online gaming operation to occur.”

In partnership with Malta-based Gaming Innovation Group (GiG), SkyCity’s online casino currently offers a combination of online slot games, live dealer, and virtual sports.

With around 30,000 registered users in New Zealand, the online business unit brought in around $8.4 million in revenue to SkyCity in the second half of 2020, around a 4000% increase from the previous year period.

It’s an initiative that many casino operators around the world are following closely, particularly those in the Philippines, which are starting to look at offering online gaming to their own local market.

But the road hasn’t been easy. Ahearne said the company has to build new skillsets to be successful in the online world.

“The expertise in running an online casino is very different from the expertise running a traditional land-based casino. It’s a different skill set,” said Ahearne.

“You need to find the right technology partners to collaborate with. In land-based operations, you may have established providers of your casino management system for example. But there’s a different group of companies that you partner with for your online business.”

“One of the challenges has been building that capability as an organization. We’ve gone with the current model as an offshore business, but if it were regulated in New Zealand, we would be building a lot of the infrastructure ourselves,” he added.

There are approximately 30-40 people working on the SkyCity online gaming business, including a managing director from SkyCity who is based in London to ensure the online business is operating with SkyCity’s values at heart, particularly responsible gaming.

“We have a strict air gap between our businesses (land-based and online), that’s a requirement. In this phase, we want to establish a very high standard of compliance from a responsible gambling perspective. That has been a key focus of ours. We effectively took some of the standards from a host responsibility point of view in New Zealand, and because the business is licensed in Malta we also comply with Malta’s responsible gambling requirements.

“A practical example of that is that in New Zealand, for a New Zealander to enter a casino you need to be 20 years of age to gamble, we’ve applied that standard to our online casino. We’re trying to create a model that looks to the future should onshore regulation was to come we could apply.”

In 2019, New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) launched a study with the view of updating its 2003 Gambling Act which could eventually allow for onshore online gaming licensing.

“Our position is that we very much support the regulation of online gaming within New Zealand, which we think is the best outcome from a consumer perspective in terms of managing harm – a number one priority.

“Currently, there are no regulations and no protections for consumers in place when it comes to offshore businesses, so hence, we think regulation is the right way to address this. It also allows for measures from a harm-minimization point of view to be put in place and that also allows the government to tax revenue appropriately and to only give licenses to operators of a high standard.

Ahearne noted that the DIA conducted a review last year.

“It’s fair to say the regulator is actively looking at this area. We made a submission for the review last year.”

When asked about SkyCity’s post-covid future, Ahearne says that adaptability will be key for casino operators.

“One thing we’ve learned (from Covid), is that the ability to manage uncertainty is important. It’s about being agile and flexible.”

“The border opening process will be slow across the world. Some of the measures that we’ve put in place may exist for some time. We have to be ready for anything that is thrown at us from a risk management point of view.”

From a product perspective, Ahearne says that both a traditional and digital approach to connecting with consumers will be key.

“You look at many jurisdictions around the world, the trend is certainly that land-based casinos and operators approaching this from an omnichannel perspective. We want to own the customer not only in their land-based experience but also in their online experience.

Source: AGBrief

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Ratings firms mixed on LVS asset sale

Posted on by Admin VietNamGaming

01-10-2020 |  

Las Vegas Sands’ sale of its Nevada properties for $6.25 billion has elicited differing reactions from global credit ratings agencies.

Fitch Ratings has reaffirmed the casino operator’s ratings and negative outlook, but has decided that the transaction is a “slight credit negative” for the group.

Its reasoning is that Las Vegas Sands will lose a source of revenue from Las Vegas once those properties ramp up again and also marginally reduces the group’s diversification. With the sale of the assets, LVS becomes primarily an Asian operator with the majority of its properties based in Macau and one in Singapore.

The sale also “raises some uncertainty about the ultimate use of proceeds,” Fitch said, adding it would like more clarity.

“A revision to Stable would not necessarily hinge on LVS providing a more specific use of proceeds. However, a more aggressive shareholder return policy than what Fitch would consider commensurate with the operating recovery could lead to further rating pressure.”

Some analysts have suggested LVS may reinstate dividends to shareholders.

LVS has said that it is in growth mode and is looking for opportunities for expansion, which may include reinvestment in its properties in Asia, new markets, or digital possibilities. The latter is an area in which it lags its peers due to opposition from former Chairman Sheldon Adelson who died in January.

MGM Resorts has seen strong growth from its online joint venture with the U.K.’s Entain and is actively seeking further expansion, potentially through a major opposition.

Analysts have also pointed to possible land-based acquisitions in Asia Pacific. Bernstein Research in a note earlier this week pointed to Australia’s Crown Resorts as a possible target.

On the up side, Fitch says the sale provides the operator more liquidity and improves its overall leverage.

The negative outlook reflects with ongoing uncertainty due to Covid. The ratings agency is forecasting Macau’s gross gaming revenue to be 45 percent below 2019 levels in 2021, recovering to 15 percent below by 2022, with a weaker trajectory in Singapore.

However, it notes that LVS has taken action to bolster liquidity and its credit profile and therefore further downgrades are unlikely.

Moody’s has taken a more optimistic tack, saying the sale is a “modest credit positive.”

It provides “significant additional capital, further enhancing liquidity while providing flexibility to continue to reinvest in Macau and Singapore, as well as pursue additional growth opportunities and debt reduction.”

Moody’s also has a negative outlook on the company due to the continuing impact of Covid-19 on earnings.

Source: AGBrief

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