Van Don also to host locals
Vietnamese gamblers will soon be able to enter and play at several casinos in the country. By law, Vietnam’s casinos are now closed to all but foreigners and those who hold foreign passports.
The Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, which has signed a contract with Vietnam’s Phu Quoc Tourist Investment and Development Joint Stock Co. to manage a hotel at a property on the island, says the casino there will be “the first in Vietnam to permit domestic entry.” The resort is now under development in the Bai Dai beach area of Phu Quoc.
Phu Quoc in northern Vietnam is reportedly one of the three locations “guaranteed” to be part of a local-gambler pilot plan in Vietnam, according to Union Gaming Asia Securities.
Trinh Van Quyet, chairman of Ho Chi Minh-listed real estate developer FLC, recently told the Nikkei Asian Review that his company plans to develop a casino resort in Quang Ninh and has already acquired a 20-square-kilometer (5,000-acre) site for the project.
March 21, 2019 is the tentative opening date of a second new casino resort that will be open to the Vietnamese. It is under development in Van Don, Quang Ninh Province, in southern Vietnam.
Domestic gamblers are sure to top up gross gaming revenues in the country, and a stronger economy should help. The Review cited a recent World Tourism & Travel Council report that estimates tourism’s contribution to Vietnam’s gross domestic product will soar almost 90 percent from 2016 ($18.4 billion) to 2027 ($34.6 billion). This year alone through August, tourism grew 30 percent year-on-year to 8.47 million.
“Thanks to its long coastline, Vietnam’s tourism industry has huge potential,” Trinh said.
Macau junket investor Suncity Group Holdings Ltd., will act as a technical services provider for the Van Don resort. Suncity said it’s “the first step of the group to provide consultancy, advisory and technical services for large-scale resorts with gaming and entertainment facilities. The company will continue to expand its business scope in order to maximize returns for its shareholders.”
Suncity already has a foothold in Vietnam. It partnered with Hong Kong’s Chow Tai Fook Enterprises Ltd. and Vietnam-based VinaCapital Investment Management Ltd. to develop a $4 billion integrated resort in Hoi An. Suncity owns 34 percent of the project; its participation “should be transformational for the company, making it not only a gaming-centric platform but the only viable Vietnam-centric gaming platform,” said Union Gaming analyst Grant Govertsen.
It is also continuing with its junket business, and plans to open a new VIP operation at Okada Manila in the Philippines by fourth quarter of 2017.
In a September report, brokerage Morgan Stanley said Okada Manila in Entertainment City is “gaining momentum” after it added one junket in the third quarter. Suncity also operates VIP rooms at City of Dreams Manila, a Melco Resorts joint venture with Belle Corp., and Solaire Resort and Casino, run by Bloomberry Resorts Corp.
