运营商新闻

China – Sands, MGM and Wynn to get ‘level playing field’ in Macau’s re-licensing process

Macau’s three US casino licence holders can expect a ‘level playing field’ when it comes to the relicensing process in 2022, according to ratings agency Fitch.

Fitch believes that Sands China, MGM China and Wynn Macau will be given pragmatic approach from new Chief Executive, Ho Iat Seng but also believes there is still a chance of a seventh licence holder being granted.

Fitch said: “We expect the US-based concession holders to be treated on level playing field with their Asian counterparts given the large amount of foreign investment, positive local sentiment on the concession holders (jobs, local investment), and adverse impact an effective nationalization of gaming could have on broader foreign investment in China and its special administrative regions (SARs). The Chief Executive does have executive power to extend all concessions for five years, though we put a low probability on this occurring.”

“That said, the risk of a seventh concessionaire, incremental investment and changes to the tax rate (albeit less likely) still remain, but are manageable in our opinion. Nobody was optimistic on the segment heading into 2020 and felt additional downside risk remains should US-China trade tensions escalate and further impact Chinese business and real estate owners.”