“We are thankful that Hong Kong authorities have acted upon the criminal complaints against Kazuo Okada and his cohorts. This is just the beginning of the slew of criminal and civil cases that we will be filing against the Kazuo Group for their blatant disregard of the law.”
—Tiger Resort Asia Ltd. (TRAL), which is seeking legal redress against Kazuo Okada for his forcible takeover of Okada Manila in May. Kazuo’s board has since been removed by a Philippine court order
“A high degree of wariness over Covid appears to still be in evidence. This is problematic for markets already missing tourist traffic and hoping for higher local visitor levels.”
—YouGov poll indicating about half of gamblers in Hong Kong and Singapore are worried about patronizing land-based casinos in the aftermath of the pandemic
“Let’s just say he’s optimistic for now. … Let’s give the president some time to consider the (economy and public health).”
—Trixie Cruz-Angeles, press secretary for Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The new president is reportedly open to eliminating mask mandates as a way to boost tourism
“Unless you’re sitting in Chairman Xi’s head, you’re not going to know when anything will happen.”
—Vitaly Umansky, gaming analyst, Sanford C. Bernstein, declining to speculate on when Chinese President Xi Jinping will fully reopen Macau to travelers
“This idea that this is a solution to homelessness is a crock. They’re trying to dress up an online sports betting gambling measure, and trying to focus on the issue of the day in California.”
— Kathy Fairbanks, spokeswoman for the campaign opposing California’s Proposition 27 and supporting Proposition 26
“In just one month last year, sports gamblers wagered $7 billion — a 20-fold increase from three years earlier. That’s money they’re not spending in other parts of the economy, or worse, money they borrowed that they may not be able to pay back.”
—LA Times Editorial Board, opposing California’s Proposition 27, which would legalize online sports betting
“I’m not surprised to see it, but I am surprised to see it so soon.”
—Alun Bowden, of Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, talking about the disappearing bonuses offered by sportsbooks to entice new signups.
“When you’re delayed 18 minutes, that’s somebody’s life.”
—Richard Sneed, principal chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, talking about the importance of having an emergence service that can withstand hacking.
“It is silly for South Carolina residents to go to North Carolina to give them more revenue instead of spending that money here. How tragic it is they weren’t able to stay in their home state to be successful and to share that success with the state.”
—State Rep. Todd Rutherford, on the Catawba tribe of South Carolina, which has to go the ancestral land in North Carolina to build its Two Kings Casino
