Vietnam Government To Open New Casino for Foreign Gamblers
The anti-corruption crackdown on Macau’s casinos has scared away VIP and high-stake gamblers who are looking for a new casino destination in order to gamble and spend huge sums of money. Macau’s casinos have lost as much as $100 billion during 2014 as gamblers from Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau are being lured by neighbouring countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia, Mongolia and the Philippines who are looking to capitalize on this opportunity.
The Prime Minster of Vietnam Nguyen Tan Dung recently announced approved a proposal to construct a new casino on Vietnam’s biggest island which is also an extremely popular tourist destination. The new casino will be constructed on Phu Quoc Island and will be a part of a government project will also look to build an entertainment complex.
The Vietnamese government is open to foreign companies setting up casino operations in the country. Foreign establishments will have to meet specific criteria in order to be given a license to construct a casino in Vietnam. They will have to have a minimum of 10 years of experience in the casino industry, be willing to invest a minimum of $4 billion and ensure that the casino they construct will also have an entertainment complex, shopping malls and a luxury hotel.
The Vietnamese government will also look to market and aggressively promote its casino industry to tourists as under Vietnamese law only foreign passport holders are eligible to gamble at casinos. Vietnamese nationals are forbidden to gamble for money at casinos and can be prosecuted if they are found gambling.
After the prime minister approved the construction of a new casino, members from the Vietnamese gambling industry spoke out and asked for the prime minister to review and change the current gambling law stating that there are many Vietnamese nationals who wish to play at these casinos. Industry analysts believe that if the law is changed and Vietnamese nationals are permitted to play it will not only increase the player pool at these casinos but will also keep the majority of revenue within Vietnam.
Vietnamese tourism expert, Bui Long Quan says that thousands of Vietnamese travel overseas in order to play the casinos. It would make more sense to open Vietnamese casinos to Vietnamese and allow them to play at home instead of travelling overseas.
In a statement, Bui Long Quan said
The first benefit of this project is we don’t lose money—not letting the money out of the country, because if we let the Vietnamese go to casinos in Cambodia, Macau or Malaysia or other places, we let the money flow out
