Inside Asian Gaming

December 2012 | INSIDE ASIAN GAMING 45 REGIONAL BRIEFS Philippines Reporting Rules: No Problem A Philippines legislator says foreigners will be reluctant to gamble large amounts of money in the country’s casino if a bill requiring the properties to report suspicious transactions becomes law. Rep. Danilo Suarez of Quezon Province has moved to drop casinos, Internet casinos, real estate agents and dealers in precious metals as sectors covered under a bill recently approved by the House or Representatives. The bill, consisting of amendments to the 2001 Anti-Money Laundering law (AMLA), was approved with Mr Suarez’s exceptions. “If you put casinos on AMLA, the Bureau of Internal Revenue can come up with ideas to tax all their [foreign players] winnings, and the players would even have to get permission to bring in money. That is pretty discouraging,” he told The Manila Times . Under the existing AMLA measure, a person who is bringing in more than US$10,000 from one country to another must make a formal declaration on paper that he is in possession of such cash. Otherwise, the law considers the transfer illegal. “Let’s face it, putting casinos under the AMLA law is too strict,”Mr Suarez suggested. He added, “We are at a point where we invite investors to come here to pump in billions of dollars. The casinos here won’t survive with Filipino players. We need foreign players.” Melco Buys in Philippines Ahead of IPO Melco Crown Entertainment has taken another step into the Philippines with the purchase of a listed Philippines company to serve as a possible base to raise capital for its planned investment in one of four integrated resorts licensed for a new gaming and entertainment complex in Manila. The Macau casino operator will pay 1.26 billion Philippine pesos (HK$238.8 million/US$30.8 million) through a local subsidiary for approximately 93% of the equity of Manchester International Holdings Unlimited Corp., the company said in a filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The purchase price includes MIH’s debt. Manchester will then sell its operating subsidiaries back to the original shareholders. The plan, according to news reports, is to use MIH to manage and operate Melco Crown’s investment in the Philippines in partnership with Belle Corp.’s planned US$1 billion Manila IR. Belle is controlled by Henry Sy’s SM Investments. Sy reputedly is the Philippines’ wealthiest man. Melco Crown Entertainment plans to list shares on the Philippines Stock Exchange to raise capital in support of its $500 million-plus investment in the Belle IR. Jose Sio, chief financial officer of SM Investments, said the IPO will be launched next year, most likely, it now appears, through MIH. Galaxy appoints Gabriel Hunterton Deputy COO of Galaxy Macau Galaxy Entertainment Group announced the appointment of Gabriel Hunterton as the Deputy Chief Operating Officer of Galaxy Macau and the appointment of Charles So as the Deputy Chief Operating Officer of StarWorld Macau, both effective 27th November, 2012. Francis Lui, Vice Chairman of GEG, said, “I am very pleased with these two appointments and am extremely confident that the proven leadership, experience and expertise of Mr Hunterton and Mr So can lead Galaxy Macau and StarWorld Macau respectively to continue delivering the truly unique experience with our ‘World Class, Asian Heart’ philosophy and also ensure optimum execution of GEG’s overall objectives, plans and policies at our two properties.” During his last position as the Chief Operating Officer of StarWorld Macau, Mr Hunterton has successfully led the property to produce consecutive record- high results in one of the most competitive industries in Macau, and his significant contributions have resulted in the hotel receiving numerous awards. With this new appointment, Mr Hunterton is responsible for leading Galaxy Macau to develop and catalyze the property’s performance from an already very successful base and extend the legacy to its upcoming expansion plans. MPEL Largest Market Share Gainer in November According to J.P. Morgan’s monthly Macau market review, gross gaming revenue in November stood at MOP24.9bn, up 8% year on year or down 10% month on month. VIP revenue fell 1% year on year and mass was up a strong 32% (the strongest growth rate since May 2012). VIP junket chips volume (not affected by luck) was up 7% year on year (also the highest since May 2012). VIP rolling chips growth continued to re-accelerate, supporting J.P. Morgan’s view that the junket collection cycle and customer demand is gradually recovering. Win rate was 3.1%, in line with average of 3.1%but lower than last year’s 3.35%. On a profitability basis, J.P. Macau Profitability index rose 18% year on year (or a very strong 21% year on year growth when adjusted for luck). Looking forward, the investment bank expects mid- to high-single digit growth for December. As for market shares, on a month-on-month basis, MPEL stands out across the operators, recording the strongest market share gain. VIP segment: By junket rolling chip market share, MPEL experienced the strongest month-on-month improvement of 2.0%. MGM’s chips also increased by 1.2%, benefited from its new VIP facility opening. Galaxy and SJM both saw decreases of 1.3%. In the mass segment, MPEL saw the strongest mass share gain by 1.6%. Galaxy saw the largest decline of 1.0%. Other operators saw market share changes from -0.5% to 0%. Gabriel Hunterton MPEL’s City of Dreams