Singapore’s Casinos Made a Mistake: Cutting Out the Junkets
Pedestrians walk in front of the Bank of China building (left) and the Casino Grand Lisboa in Macau on March 12, 2015.
Photographer: Billy H.C. Kwok/Bloomberg
Singapore wanted nothing to do with the often questionable gaming middlemen who proliferate in Macau. The gambling houses in Macau get around China’s currency controls by relying on so-called junket operators to extend credit to mainland high rollers, a business model that has been linked to organized crime groups known as triads, says Steve Vickers, chief executive officer at risk consultant Steve Vickers & Associates. But lately, Singapore’s two casinos appear to be paying the price of their government restricting that setup.
Chinese VIP gamblers patronize both cities—and account for about half of all Singapore gaming revenue, says Grant Govertsen, an analyst at Union Gaming Advisors. And bad debts are mounting in both cities as gamblers have a hard time adjusting to China’s corruption crackdown and slowing economic growth.