Inside Asian Gaming

inside asian gaming september 2016 26 Tan Hee Teck CHAIRMAN AND CEO Resorts World Sentosa Power 1,610 last 15 score year Claims to fame Led Genting’s effort to win a Singapore gaming license Spearheading Jeju IR development 15 Asian Gaming POWER 50 2 0 1 6 entry for mainland Chinese. For Bloomberry, Korea seemed like a natural fit, since it’s the largest source of visitors to the Philippines. But Korea remained committed to foreigners-only casinos outside remote Kangwon Land, cooling feverish interest in the market. Early last year, Bloomberry was one of more than 30 applicants expressing interest in a Korean IR, but by late last year actual applicants had dwindled to a handful, Bloomberry not among them. Its Jeju Sun casino reopened a year ago, made steady losses and, in June, was sold to Iao Kun Group, a Macau junket promoter listed on NASDAQ. Next up, Cyprus, where Bloomberry, Lawrence Ho’s Melco International and Cambodia’s NagaCorp are bidding to create Europe’s first modern integrated resort in a tourist destination. Beyond that, Mr Razon recently told World Gaming Group – owner of IAG – that, “South America is still the market that interests us the most, specifically Argentina. Buenos Aires is a big gaming market with no integrated resorts yet, so that will be one place we are eyeing.” As for Solaire, Mr Razon says it will expand as local casino revenue does. Phase 2 will include “more gaming, probably three more hotel towers, the centrepiece of which will be a very large mall, and an 18,000 seat arena.” While spanning the globe, Mr Razon surely wants to stay ahead at home. Enrique Razon Jr CHAIRMAN AND CEO Bloomberry Resorts Power 1,620 Last 19 Score Year Claims to Fame Owns Solaire, the first integrated resort to open in Manila’s Entertainment City Abandoned South Korea casino ambitions, now eyeing Cyprus and Latin America 14 Leading the Philippines private casino market, thanks to Entertainment City trailblazer Solaire, is not enough for Enrique Razon. In April, the billionaire announced plans for a new casino hotel in Quezon City, on the north side of Metro Manila. Mr Razon recently raised his profile as the face of Philippines casino operators when the Supreme Court announced barring income tax on casinos, thanks to a lawsuit Bloomberry filed in 2014. And while his fortune was made in ports services, it is clear he has similarly global ambitions when it comes to gaming. First it was South Korea, where Bloomberry Resorts – the Philippines listed vehicle for Mr Razon’s gaming interests – acquired land in Incheon and spent US$100 million on a casino hotel in Jeju, South Korea’s leading domestic vacation destination with visa-free