Vietnam. Two casino resorts under development in Vietnam – located respectively in the Van Don Special Economic Zone, it the north of country, and in Phu Quoc Island, in the south – will be allowed to accept bets from Vietnamese gamblers, according to Augustine Ha Ton Vinh, an academic who says he has been advising the government on liberalising Vietnam’s gaming industry.
“In late September, the Politburo [of the Communist Party of Vietnam] met and decided to open up the gaming industry, making it a national policy,” Mr Vinh ; He added: “They decided to allow local Vietnamese to gamble in two casinos – one in the north, in Van Don; and Phu Quoc in the south – on a trial basis for three years.”
Vietnam has a population of around 94 million. The country has several casinos, but authorities prohibit Vietnamese punters from gambling within the borders of the country, unless they hold a foreign passport. Allowing locals to play – even under restricted conditions – is likely to boost the interest of foreign investors in that nation’s casino gaming market, according to several analysts.
Mr Vinh’s comments contradict reports by Vietnamese media in early September, that cited comments by reportedly senior – though unidentified – government officials, stating that the national authorities wanted to keep in place the country’s ban on locals entering casinos located inside Vietnam.
Mr Vinh was speaking on the sidelines of the Macao Gaming Show 2016, a regional casino industry trade show held from November 15 to 17 at the Venetian Macao. He is also a senior advisor for the Van Don Special Economic Zone.
The Van Don project is being developed by Vietnam’s Sun Group. It is located in a remote area around 160 kilometres (99.4 miles) east of Hanoi. Van Don’s development plan includes an airport to make it easy for players to come to the casino. Mr Vinh says the resort should open for business some time between 2017 and 2018.
The Phu Quoc casino is promoted also by a Vietnamese firm, called Vingroup. Unconfirmed media reports from Vietnam state the property could start operations before the end of this year.
Mr Vinh explained that the decision to allow locals to gamble at those two properties would be featured in a updated draft of a gaming decree that has been under consideration by the Vietnamese government since at least 2012.
He added that, to enter a casino, locals would have to pay a daily entry levy of US$50: a monthly pass would cost about US$1,100. Eligibility criteria for locals to enter casinos would include a minimum gambling age of 21 years and a minimum monthly income threshold, according to Mr Vinh.
The revised gaming draft decree could be published as soon as “the end of this year or some time in the spring,” Mr Vinh said.
He stated that, to attract further foreign investment into the country’s casino industry, the Vietnamese government had also halved the minimum required capital investment for each of the country’s integrated resort licences. The figure was initially set at US$4 billion.
Ho Tram out
When asked about why – from the information he had received – The Grand Ho Tram, an up and running gaming resort on the country’s southern coast, looked likely to be excluded from the trial programme for locals, Mr Vinh said that the Vietnamese government saw the property as better fit to serve tourists. “The government never had Ho Tram in its mind as a place for Vietnamese,” he stated.
The Grand Ho Tram casino resort was designed by casino architect Paul Steelman, and opened in July 2013. The project is part of the Ho Tram Strip scheme, promoted by Asian Coast Development (Canada) Ltd. The firm was able to secure a 50-year lease on a 164-hectare (405-acre) beachside plot in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, 120 kilometres southeast of Ho Chi Minh City, to implement the scheme.
In September, it was reported that Vietnam’s Ba Ria-Vung Tau province had agreed a location for Asian Coast Development to build an airport. The facility – to be located in Loc An Commune in Dat Do District – will have services from larger airports in Vietnam, in order to bring in tourists to The Grand Ho Tram.
There are currently several casino projects planned for Vietnam. One of those projects – located in Vietnam’s Quang Nam Province – involves Hong Kong-based Chow Tai Fook Enterprises Ltd, Macau junket operator Suncity Group and Vietnam-based asset management firm VinaCapital Group. In May, Suncity said in an emailed that the project would include three hotels. The statement did not mention gaming.
Las Vegas Sands Corp is among several major foreign casino investors that have in the past reportedly looked at development opportunities in Vietnam. So reportedly has Bill Weidner, a former president of that company, who has since pursued investments of his own. MGM Resorts International once had a branding deal with the Ho Tram resort, but pulled out in March 2013, four months prior to the property’s opening.
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HSBC Global Research predicts that MGM China, Wynn Macau, Galaxy, and Sands China will pay dividends in 2024, while Melco and SJM are likely to withhold dividends.
In a recent report on HSBC Global Investment Summit 2024 key takeaways, the financial services agency said that Macau’s gaming demand remains healthy, while gaming operators “remain committed to shareholder returns”. Analysts Charlene Liu, Jessie Lu, and Lauren Cai maintain a ‘buy’ rating for MGM China and Galaxy, noting that both operators observed positive trends across all business segments, with notable upticks in VIP segment.
Macau gaming stocks remain intact, supported by a steady daily gross gaming revenue.
Earlier in March, MGM China announced a final dividend of HKD0.243 per share and a special dividend of HKD0.104 per share for 2023. Similarly, Wynn Macau declared a final dividend of HKD0.075 per share for the same fiscal year.
“With growing offerings of non-gaming events of a different nature, both[operators] expect to see travelers return more often to Macau and the seasonality trend to smoothen out,” the analysts said.
Thailand’s Ministry of Finance has been appointed lead agency to consider a House committee study recommending the legalization of casino gaming but will work with 16 other agencies in doing so, local media reports.
Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat, who chairs the House committee, said earlier that the complexes would create jobs, boost tourism, and curb illegal gambling. He expected the complexes to generate 40-50 billion baht of revenue annually. After the plan is greenlighted, a policy-level committee will be established to supervise the project, to be chaired by the Prime Minister, he said.
Thailand’s National Assembly to debate introducing casinos on March 28
An administration-level committee will then be formed, comprised of ministers and executives from related agencies to consider each aspect of the project in detail.
The 16 other agencies named include the ministries of Tourism and Sports, Social Development and Human Security, Higher Education Science Research and Innovation, Agriculture and Cooperatives, Transport, Interior, Justice, Labour, Culture, Education, Public Health and Industry.
The study itself recommends imposing a 17% tax on gross gaming revenue – making it one of the lowest tax regimes in the region – with locals to be required to pay an entry levy of an amount yet to be determined. License duration would be set at an initial 20 years and then renewable every five years, while the larger casino complexes would require a minimum investment of US$2.7 billion.
The Office of the Council of State, the National Economic and Social Development Council, the National Office of Buddhism and the Royal Thai Police will also be consulted.
In march, a total of 36.301 billion yuan of lottery tickets were sold nationwide, a year-on-year decrease of 5.509 billion yuan or 13.2%. Among them, the sales of welfare lottery institutions were 12.632 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 899 million yuan, a decrease of 6.6%; the sales of sports lottery institutions were 23.669 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 4.610 billion yuan, a decrease of 16.3%. This is mainly because the market was closed during the Spring Festival holiday in February this year.
Cumulatively from January to February, a total of 93.865 billion yuan in lottery tickets were sold nationwide, an increase of 18.832 billion yuan or 25.1% year-on-year.
Among them, the sales of welfare lottery institutions were 32.322 billion yuan, an increase of 7.950 billion yuan or 32.6% year-on-year; the sales of sports lottery institutions were 61.543 billion yuan, an increase of 10.882 billion yuan or 21.5% year-on-year.
Foreigner-only casino operator Grand Korea Leisure which operates three casinos in South Korea and Seoul and Busan under the Seven Luck brand reported a 19.9% month-on-month increase in casino revenue to KRW40.4 billion (US$29.9 million) in March, which was also 4.4% higher than the same month in 2023.
The strong result, comprising a 19.7% sequential increase in table revenue to KRW37.3 billion (US$27.6 million) and 22.7% increase in slots revenue to KRW3.06 billion (US$2.27 million), came off a 10.1% improvement in drop to KRW321.1 billion (US$237.5 million).
This brings casino sales for the first three months of 2024 combined to KRW93.7 billion (US$69.3 million), down 12.9% on the same period last year but on the rise after a slow start to the year.
Table drop of KRW916.0 billion (US$677.4 million) through March is up 21.5% higher year-on-year.
This March 28th Of the 257 House members in attendance, 253 voted in favor of the casino gaming legislation. Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat said a casino feasibility study could now be advanced to national government’s cabinet. Assuming momentum continues building, it’s possible the first gaming venue in Thailand could open its doors before MGM Resorts International’s (NYSE: MGM) Osaka integrated resort. The first Japanese casino hotel is expected to open in 2030.
Thailand’s National Assembly to debate introducing casinos on March 28
Assuming two years to finalise a regulatory framework and three years to construct, the first entertainment centre may only open in 2029 (in Thailand),” said Maybank Investment Bank in a note to clients.
Should Thailand’s national cabinet formally approve entertainment complexes, it’s possible that up to eight such venues will be permitted and it’s likely that awarding of gaming licenses will occur in phases.
Thailand Casinos Could Beat Japan Efficiency, Emulate Singapore Model
Owing to its reputation as major tourist destination in Southeast Asia and its penchant for attracting visitors from China and the West, Thailand was already expected to attract some of the gaming industry’s biggest names in terms of bidding for casino permits.
That scenario could be amplified should the Thai government continue displaying efficiency in the legalization and regulatory process. Delays and lack of clarity on those fronts are why so many of the industry’s largest operators eventually threw in the towel on Japan, leaving that country with just the MGM Osaka venue to start its move into casino gaming.
Analysts also expect Thailand’s casino framework will be closer to that of Singapore than Macau and low tax rates could be another draw to international operators.
“Proposed gaming tax rates are low at 17 percent and social safeguards à la [in the manner of] Singapore will be proposed,” noted Maybank analysts.
Singapore is home to just two integrated resorts, which are operated by Genting Singapore and a unit of Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS).
It’s expected that Thai entertainment complexes featuring casinos could boost tourism spending in the country by as much as 52% annually. That’s one reason why the country will likely draw bids from some of the biggest names in the gaming industry.
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