The Prime Minister of Vietnam is expected to approve the new gaming decree this Christmas or early in the new year, according to an expert in the industry.
“Vietnam, after years of wringing its hands whether to open up the gaming industry, has finally reached important decisions and allowed international investors to come into one of the last fertile gaming lands in Asia,” said Professor Augustine Vinh, chairman and CEO of Stellar Management.
The country opened its first gaming lounge in 1994 in Do Son. Vietnam has today seen more than 40 electronic gaming lounges in five-star hotels around the country and seven small casinos with live dealers, most of them at the Vietnam-China borders, said Vinh.
“In the past few years, four integrated resorts have been granted investment certificates and the first gaming licence has been issued to the Grand Ho Tram resort in South Vietnam. As soon as the other three IRs (Van Don in the North, South Hoi An in the central region, and Phu Quoc in the south) reach the required $1bn disbursement in investment, they will also get their gaming licences.”
According to Vinh, earlier this month the PM and his Cabinet approved another integrated resort in the well-known Cam Ranh Bay in central Vietnam. It is also understood that Hue, also in central Vietnam, is on the radar for another IR.
By 2018, the country will see a total of six integrated resorts, 50 hotel electronic gaming lounges and seven small casinos for foreign tourists, as well as gaming rooms at departure level of the country’s seven international airports, said Vinh.
Source: Asia Gaming Brief
