Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) and Marina Bay Sands (MBS) in Singapore closed last week due to growing fears of a local coronavirus outbreak. The properties, owned respectively by a unit of Genting Singapore Ltd. and the Las Vegas Sands Corp., will remain closed until May 4.
In a press release, Genting Singapore said it would “temporarily suspend” all guest offerings at Resorts World Sentosa for four weeks “in line with the Singapore government’s directives.” In an alert on its website, MBS informed patrons that its casino, hotel and all attractions would close completely at 8 a.m. Monday, April 6 and stay closed for the same period. Hotel reservations at both resorts were cancelled and full refunds will be issued.
According to GGRAsia, in mid-March Genting Singapore announced pay cuts for all staff at the managerial level or above, due to the “massive disruption to the travel and tourism industries” caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. It also issued a profit warning for the first half this year.
In an April 3 announcement, a multi-ministry taskforce in Singapore pledged to employ “heightened measures” and “much more significantly” reduce “movements and interactions in public and private places.” All but essential services were closed and education went online. Restaurants may only provide takeout and delivery orders until the shutdown ends.
The stricter precautions followed a spike in coronavirus cases in the city-state, with infections up among foreign workers living in dormitories, according to the government. Authorities said an additional 120 cases were confirmed, bringing the total to 1,309.
The government recently announced a SGD48 billion (US$33.3 billion) stimulus package to help support businesses and families during the Covid-19 pandemic. Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat said more help would be forthcoming.
The Singapore Business Times said the mass closures were part of the government’s “circuit-breaker” measures, to stop the virus in its tracks.
In related news, Singapore is set to establish a new Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA) that will bring together the nation’s various regulatory bodies under a single agency.
Set to be implemented by 2021, the GRA will see the current Casino Regulatory Authority (CRA), which oversees Singapore’s casinos, and the Gambling Regulatory Unit, which regulates remote gaming and “fruit machines,” come under one umbrella Inside Asian Gaming reported.
In a statement, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said Singapore’s current regulatory framework has delivered positive results, with minimal negative social impacts. Fewer than 1 percent of all crimes can be linked to gambling. But it cited “emerging trends” that can have a significant impact on the gambling landscape.
“For example, technology has changed the way people gamble and made it more accessible,” the MHA said. “Business models have evolved to suit changing customer preferences by introducing gambling elements in products that are traditionally not seen as gambling.”
In response, the new GRA “will consolidate and optimize gambling regulatory resources within a single agency. This will allow GRA to stay even more effectively abreast of technological and global trends, respond faster to emerging products in particular those that cut across different domains, and take a more holistic approach to gambling policies and issues. Even as we update our laws, MHA will retain a generally prohibitive stance towards gambling, and continue to maintain a risk-based regulatory approach towards existing gambling operators.”
