Singapore govt touts gaming oversight consolidationGGR Asia · April 20, 2018 at 8:24 amJosephine Teo, Singapore’s second minister for Manpower and Home Affairs, said there needs to be greater consolidation of casino regulatory functions in the city-state, according to local media reports quoting the official. Currently, Singapore has different regulations and agencies governing different gambling segments, such as casinos, remote gambling and slot machines operated by private clubs. “This piecemeal approach will not be sustainable or adequate to deal with the growing complexities of the gambling landscape and products,” said Ms Teo as quoted by the city-state’s Straits Times newspaper. Her comments were made at the annual Workplan Seminar of the Casino Regulatory Authority on Friday.
In Vietnam, a mega casino rises with the help of a Macau junket companyStraits Times · April 20, 2018 at 8:23 amAlong a 3km stretch of coastline in central Vietnam, construction cranes are digging up mounds of sand and rubble where the country’s biggest casino is set to open next year. When completed, the US$4 billion (S$5.25 billion) Hoiana project will extend across almost 1,000ha, and also include shops, restaurants, golf courses and water parks. Driving the project is Suncity Group Holdings, which has made billions luring high-rollers – mainly from China – to the baccarat tables in the Chinese territory of Macau.
Singapore casinos will face greater global competition, disruption, says ministerThe Business Times · April 20, 2018 at 4:32 amGiven the increasingly complex gaming landscape in Singapore, there is a need to consider greater consolidation of casino regulatory functions, said Second Minister for Manpower and Home Affairs Josephine Teo. Today, Singapore has different regulations and agencies governing gambling products such as casinos, remote gambling and fruit machines operated by private clubs, she noted at the annual Workplan Seminar of the Casino Regulatory Authority (CRA) on Friday. “This piecemeal approach will not be sustainable or adequate to deal with the growing complexities of the gambling landscape and products,” said Mrs Teo.
Aquis boss accuses ACT government of 17-month silenceInside Asian Gaming · April 20, 2018 at 4:25 amThe CEO of Hong Kong’s Aquis Entertainment Limited has accused the Australian Capital Territory government of leaving it in the dark for 17 months over an AU$330 million Canberra Casino development proposal. The accusation follows an ultimatum issued by the government earlier this week giving Aquis one month to submit a final proposal or risk losing the opportunity to install up to 200 slot machines in the property. In a statement posted on the company’s website this week, Aquis CEO Jessica Mellor said that it had received the official request from the government for confirmation of the its intentions in relation to the proposed redevelopment and would respond within the timeframe.
Macau issues cryptocurrency crime warning after link to former triad boss emergesNiall Fraser, South China Morning Post · April 19, 2018 at 11:41 pmConcerns over a Macau cryptocurrency firm backed by a notorious former gangster, and which has links to the company behind the Facebook data-mining scandal, have prompted monetary chiefs in the city to issue a warning over possible “fraud and criminal activities.” The warning comes in the wake of revelations that Macau Dragon Group, a firm associated with “Broken Tooth” Wan Kuok-koi, employed the British company, Cambridge Analytica, to promote Dragon Coin, a new virtual currency created to help gamblers transfer money to Macau casinos. Wan is one of Asia’s most infamous organised crime figures, and spent more than 10 years in jail for an array of gangland crimes including being leader of the 14K triad group in Macau.
Kenya to impose 20 percent tax on all gambling winningsCalvinAyre.com · April 19, 2018 at 7:28 pmKenya’s gamblers are crying foul after the government revived controversial plans to impose a 20 percent tax on gambling winnings. On Thursday, local media reported that Kenya’s government had tabled a draft of the Tax Laws (Amendment) Bill 2018 in Parliament on Wednesday. Among the bill’s more controversial provisions is the imposition of a 20percent tax on all lottery, betting and gaming winnings. Assuming the new Bill is adopted, Kenyan gambling operators would be required to withhold 20 percent of players’ winnings on behalf of the taxman. A similar withholding system was abandoned in 2016 due to myriad problems associated with its implementation but the government appears confident that it has now sorted out these issues.
Chinese firm’s Filipino partner denies Boracay casino plan droppedCNN Philippines staff · April 19, 2018 at 1:35 amThe Filipino partner of Macau casino operator Galaxy Entertainment Group says it has not scrapped its plans to build a casino on Boracay, contrary to the government’s announcement. Leisure & Resorts World Corporation (LRWC) on Wednesday said it is still in talks with the Chinese firm. . According to the company’s General Information Sheet posted on the web site of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Negros Occidental Rep. Alfredo Abelardo “Albee” B. Benitez is the biggest individual stockholder owning 11.24 percent as of July 29, 2016. “Both parties have not reached any final decision regarding its planned Boracay resort project,” it said in a statement. “Contrary to claims that Galaxy has ‘abandoned’ its planned Boracay project, no such announcement has been made nor communicated with PAGCOR.”
ACT left Canberra Casino in dark for 17 months over pokies plansDaniel Burdon, Canberra Times · April 19, 2018 at 1:32 amThe owners of Canberra Casino have claimed the ACT government left them in the dark for 17 months over the details of its legislation to allow pokies in the casino. Aquis’ chief executive Jessica Mellor made the claim in a statement to the stock exchange this week, in the wake of the government setting a one-month ultimatum on the company to confirm its plans for the casino. The company, majority owned by Hong Kong investor Tony Fung, first lodged its unsolicited bid with the government for a $330 million redevelopment of the casino in 2015, part of which was to include hundreds of poker machines.
London’s possible casino expansion riles problem gambling advocateMegan Stacey, The London Free Press · April 19, 2018 at 1:28 amA generation after Londoners voted overwhelmingly against a casino, a problem gambling expert is warning that a massive new casino could spell major addiction issues for the city. But new numbers from city hall suggest many Londoners are in favour of expanded gambling, after an informal online survey found nearly 70 per cent support for the concept. The ratio – based on feedback received by the city in an unscientific survey – is an exact reversal of the 70 per cent of citizens who voted against building a casino in London when the question was on the ballot during the 1997 civic election. The social impacts were a big part of the conversation then, too. Now a proposal by Gateway Casinos & Entertainment to build a $140-million casino complex has brought those worries to the surface again.
Japan casino floor limit to be set by govt: reportGGR Asia · April 18, 2018 at 10:08 pmThe latest draft of Japan’s ruling coalition’s Integrated Resorts (IR) Implementation Bill does not include a requirement that only 3 percent of the total gross floor area of a resort could be allotted for gaming, reported Reuters news agency. Instead, the limit for the gaming area in such resorts will be set by the government, although it is not clear at what level, said the news agency, claiming to have seen the latest draft of the bill. A statute making casino gambling legal in Japan came officially into effect in December 2016. The second piece of legislation – the IR Implementation Bill – now needs to be approved detailing the specifics: how casinos are administered and regulated; the taxation regime to be applied to them; and the number of licences to be issue.
