Events
IAGA SUMMIT Macau 2018
Rui Pinto Proença, Partner, MdMe Lawyers
Rui Pinto Proença is a partner at MdME, where he heads the firm’s Corporate|Gaming practice. He has been based in Macau for the past eight years, where he is recognized as one of the leading gaming lawyers. Rui regularly acts for industry investors, casino operators, equipment manufacturers and gaming promoters in key regional projects. He also assists issuers, sponsors and underwriters in relation to listings of Macau gaming interests with overseas capital markets. Rui has been actively assisting sector players and governments in emerging gaming jurisdictions across the Asia-Pacific region.
One of the interesting features of the LGMT is the definition of a strong zoning policy for the entire country. Such policy is aimed at reining in the existing border casinos and channel new investments to the coastal provinces, particularly to the resort city of Sihanoukville, which is served by an international airport. If it succeeds, the Kingdom of Wonder may, with one stroke, phase out less desirable players and create something that Asia is yet to see – a beachfront casino strip.
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE CAMBODIA?
Often dubbed as an emerging market, Cambodia is by no means a newcomer to the gaming scene. Although officially illegal since the enactment of the 1996 Law on the Suppression of Gambling, the offer of casino gaming to non-nationals has been authorised by the Royal Government of Cambodia (ROG) on an exceptional basis for decades. At the end of last year Cambodia reportedly had more than 75 licensed casino venues spread throughout the country. Tis is more than any other Asian jurisdiction… With the exception of Phnom Pehn’s Nagaworld, operated by HK Listed NagaCorp (holding a monopoly within a 200km radius of the capital), most casinos are located in the border towns of Poipet (on the border with Tailand) and Bavet (on the border with Vietnam), with some operating in the beach tourism destinations of Koh Kong and Sihanoukville.
Despite the lack of a consistent strategy to govern and develop the industry, its numbers should not be ignored. Analysts set Cambodia’s 2017 GGR at approximately US$1.5bn. Forecasts predict that number may rise to US$2.5bn in 2018. Tat would represent a 40 per cent growth year-on-year. An increase mostly driven by a strong VIP run-rate in Naga’s newly opened Integrated Resort, Naga 2.
However, the increasing figures are not strong enough to hide an unavoidable reality. Te Kingdom has yet to attract any global household name. Consequently, the industry has been incapable of becoming a driver of international tourism and a creator of quality jobs to the country’s young population. Two factors contribute to this shortcoming. One is no doubt the country’s political instability. Early last year Cambodia’s Supreme Court dissolved the main
P66 NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE /MARKET DATA
opposition party. Prime Minister Hun Seng, at odds with Western democracies, will now run in the upcoming general election virtually unopposed. He has led the country since 1985.
Te second factor, and no less relevant, is the chronic lack of a regulatory framework with international standards. Tat may be about to change. A team led by the Ministries of Interior and Economy and Finance have made public a draft bill of the “Law on the Management of Integrated Resorts and Gaming Trade” (LMGT). Te bill may be put forward to the National Assembly before the July general election. If approved, it may set the course for a market approach to gambling and to the implementation of international best practices likely to appeal to international investors.
One of the interesting features of the LGMT is the definition of a strong zoning policy for the entire country. Such policy is aimed at reining in the existing border casinos and channelling of new investments to the coastal provinces, particularly to the resort city of Sihanoukville, which is served by an international airport. If it succeeds, the Kingdom of Wonder may, with one stroke, phase out less desirable players and create something that Asia has yet to see – a beachfront casino strip.
Te challenges are still plenty, but so are the opportunities. Strong diplomatic relations with the PRC guarantee a steady influx of Chinese tourists and, for as long as Tailand and Vietnam do not allow its citizens to gamble within their borders, Cambodia will be catering to a regional clientele of 160 million people. If indeed new legislation is adopted and implemented, Cambodia will no doubt be a market to watch.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150
