Macau’s junket association has been struggling to bring VIP gamblers into the casinos as the anti-corruption crackdown has severely affected their business. During the past few months a number of junket operators have contemplated shutting down their operations due to a lack of revenue.
Last month the government decided to crackdown on the junket industry and impose stricter regulations after another corruption scandal was highlighted by junket operate Dore Entertainment Co Ltd. The junket which operates VIP rooms at the Wynn Macau announced that a cage operator had allegedly stolen over HKD 400 million based on a total of 49 complaints which were filed with the authorities.
The Macau government has decided to roll out even more strict regulations to govern the junket industry and Macau Junket Promoters and Cooperators Association have reviewed the same and thrown their support behind the new regulations and only requested for the government to set up a procedure to ensure that there is clear communication at all times.
The top executives of the junket association attended a meeting with Lionel Leong, the Secretary for Economy and Finance to discuss the Dore cage manger incident and how the new policies will help in preventing such theft. The junket executives also spoke about the future of junket operators in Macau and how they were going to cope with the lack of VIP gamblers.
The junket executives met with Leong and legislator Zheng Anting and confirmed that they were in favour of the new regulations and appreciated the Gaming Inspection Bureau’s issuance and new regulations that were designed to protect their interests. In a statement, Kuok Chi Chong, president of the Macao Junket Promoters and Cooperators Association said “We discussed this issue with the Secretary.? The Secretary said that a law revision might be launched in the future to optimise management of the industry.? We hope the Secretary could communicate more with us when revising the laws in the future.”
Macau’s gaming revenue in October fell the least when compared to the last 17 months, which was a positive sign for casinos and junket operators. Casino shares rose in Hong Kong and junket operators remained positive that the VIP market will start to recover quickly. Suncity Group, the biggest junket operator in Macau remains confident about its future as the chief executive officer Alvin Chau believes that the VIP market is a lot healthier than before and believes that the VIP business has already reached rock bottom in 2015 and the only way forward is up.