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known as junket operators, are in need of revision, says Macau lawyer Luís Mesquita de Melo, former execu- tive vice-president, general counsel and company secretary of Sands Chi- na. T e regulations came into force in 2002 but the business has evolved fast, making a revamp necessary. “Certain


aspects of regulation


should be changed, particularly im- posing obligations of handing out more information. But I also think that it is necessary to impose a certain transparency in the way the regulator performs,” Mr Melo said on the side- lines of a session at G2E Asia called “VIP Vision: How Junkets Work Across Asia”.


Time’s up T


BY LUCIANA LEITÃO he


regulations governing VIP gaming promoters, commonly


Mr Melo says most rules governing


gambling and junkets are the result of instructions by the Gaming Inspec- tion and Coordination Bureau that have not been made public. “It is very important that these in-


structions are not only made public but also that the eff orts made [by the regulator] in research, control and su- pervision of the diff erent gambling as- pects, including junkets, is revealed,” says Mr Melo. An expert on gaming law at the


University of Macau, Jorge Godinho, agrees enforcement should be more transparent but argues there is lit- tle need to reset the legal framework because it is relatively complete. He sees the problem stemming from con- jecture about junkets because so little information is made public.


A Singapore thing T ings are quite diff erent in Singa- pore. Junket operators who intend to do business there must fi rst get a licence from the govern- ment’s Casino Regulatory Authority. T e licens- ing process involves disclosing history,


fi nancial company


history and signing a binding statu- tory declaration – among a number of hurdles. Although


ments to get a licence to do business, “the licensing procedure adopted does not go as far” as in Singapore, Mr Melo says. Singapore’s rules are so strict that


no junket operator has been licensed there yet, though there have been per- sistent reports of unlicensed junkets. T e Casino Regulatory Authority is currently vetting more than 40 appli- cants to become licensed as junkets, a move which analysts believe has the potential to further energise the mar- ket and bring in many more gamblers from around the East Asian region, but the process is moving painfully slowly. Mr Melo says an eff ort to harmo-


nise the Macau and Singapore systems to avoid embarrassment is long over- due. “Imagine if a junket is rejected in Singapore and, instead, is fully li- censed in Macau.” In view of some junket operators


already having associated compa- nies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq, and the in- creasing sophistication of their busi- ness, Mr Melo says the time is right to revise Macau’s rules. Ben Lee of Macau’s IGamiX Con-


sulting says the lack of transparency is slowly changing. By opting to go pub- lic, gaming promoters are subjecting themselves to “greater scrutiny” and they now have to report suspicious transactions to the local authorities. T e problem lies with the fact that


a


junket operator in Macau must also meet certain require-


junkets are diffi cult to regulate. “Jun- kets at the top layer are identifi ed with the casino but the sub-junkets are not, and sometimes they have sub-sub- junkets,” he points out.


A former Sands China executive says the territory’s junket rules need an overhaul


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