Las Vegas Sands Chairman and CEO Rob Goldstein believes the likely addition of China’s Digital RMB as legal tender in Macau would serve as a positive for the SAR’s gaming operators by adding a new form of liquidity.
The question of how the Digital RMB might impact Macau was raised during the company’s 1Q21 earnings call on Thursday (Asia time) after Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng revealed earlier this month that the government is planning to amend its financial laws to allow for its introduction.
Exactly how a digital currency might impact Macau’s casino operators has been a point of contention given it would be traceable and allow Beijing to better track how and where money was being used. It is also seen as another blow to junkets by largely eliminating the use of underground banking channels.
However Goldstein, who also serves as Chairman and CEO of Sands China, said the Digital RMB could in fact help operators expand their customer base.
“Some people are concerned, we’re not. We think it’s an additional form of liquidity into the market,” he told analysts during Thursday’s earnings call.
“We view it as a positive. We would love to have more cross-border currency. It’s another form of currency. And we shouldn’t only be concerned – our business is not built on money laundering or on a necessary junket profile.
“We’re looking to focus on the mass customer, premium mass, that’s our bread and butter. That’s who we are and where we want to go in the future, and we can build a business that keeps growing on the back of that.
“More visitation, more penetration in China, more ways we’re getting people to gamble and visit Macau is what we’re looking for.
“The Digital RMB is another value add to it. I think it’s positive. I know the common wisdom is that it’s going to be turbulent but I don’t want people thinking that way.
“It’s not an immediate concern nor a long-term concern. It may be a very positive thing for the Macau market as it becomes more traditional, more integrated into China and more consumer-friendly. It will be very positive for us.”
Brokerage Sanford C Bernstein said in a research report published earlier this year that the introduction of a government-backed digital yuan could prove particularly beneficial for Macau’s high margin mass and premium mass segments by allowing for easier access to money by mainland customers inside Macau’s casinos.
“If the RMB were to become legal tender in Macau, then the path is opened to usage of Digital RMB as well,” the report said.
“In the context of casinos, this would mean for example being able to buy chips for play directly from the casino cage (or even a table) instantly using (digital) RMB without the need to convert into HKD.
“The elimination of the need for currency conversion from the key Macau customer group (mainland Chinese) would be advantageous as it would simplify the process and not subject customers to f/x transaction costs.
“Digital RMB would allow greater government scrutiny and control over money flows. But it would also allow easier money transfer [and] eliminate the need to use intermediaries (like junkets, underground banks or pawnshops).
“Mass and premium mass play could surely benefit due to ease of money flow.”
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