Revenues for infrastructure?
Vietnam’s decision to allow locals to gamble at several select casinos could bring new global investment, says real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle.
“International casino developers have been circling Vietnam given the recent lifting of a ban on local gambling,” the firm wrote this month. “Many hotels across the country have chosen to add electronic gaming to boost revenues.”
A three-year pilot program to test the results of locals gaming took effect March 15. It allows Vietnamese citizens over 21 years old with a monthly income of at least VND10 million (US$43) to enter local casinos and gamble. While the decree is in place, no casino has yet been authorized to let residents in, reports GGRAsia. Reported locations include Van Don and Phu Quoc, as well as Ho Tram, Da Nang and Hoi An.
Meanwhile, the country may be well served to put a better spin on the gaming industry than has been enjoyed to date in some Asian countries. Casino projects in the region “have often been much maligned by industry and mainstream press, particularly highlighting the social ills” potentially related to gambling. But the document stated that “financial success can be achieved with the right planning and thus investors will continue to pursue such opportunities.”
Ben Lee of IGamiX Management & Consulting Ltd. says the pilot program is not likely to affect Cambodia, where most Vietnamese go to gamble. “The jurisdictions that may be impacted—albeit in a very small and probably insignificant way—are Singapore and Macau, where the super-wealthy Vietnamese go to play. They will no longer have to wait to get visas to Macau, or to try and arrange for funds to be transferred or carried to Singapore as they will be able to play domestically.”
Shaun McCamley, managing partner of Global Market Advisors, said Vietnam was judicious in its choice of more remote locations for the pilot, and hopes investors will put some of the returns into better “roads, water and power.”
George Tanasijevich, global development managing director for the Las Vegas Sands Corp. and CEO and president of the Marina Bay Sands, told the Vietnam Economic Times, “Our desire to invest and develop an integrated resort in Ho Chi Minh and/or Hanoi remains unchanged. We view Vietnam as a market that has a huge upside for business and leisure tourism and we believe that our meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions-focused business model would be very successful if situated in the right location.”
