Commentary: Casino battle royale looms in Asia as Japan joins the fray and Thailand mulls

LET THE CHIPS FALL WHERE THEY MAY

Japan may not be the only worry for the Singapore integrated resort industry, with a threat looming closer to home.

A bipartisan government effort in Thailand has made great strides to legalise casino gambling, with a plan to house them in entertainment complexes in up to five locations across the country. 

If the Thais keep up that momentum after the May national elections, there is every possibility that Thai casinos may give Singapore a run for its money before Japan.

Thailand is a worthy match for Japan in the tourism stakes, with a genre that makes for greater appeal in entertainment and casino gambling. Singapore has more to fear in Thailand than Japan, not least in its closer proximity, even with MBS and RWS refreshed. 

Genting and Las Vegas Sands, the owners of RWS and MBS respectively, will also be concerned over the expiration of the extension of their exclusivity in 2030. All that coming to a head may warrant something more drastic if the Singapore gaming industry is to keep its position at the top. Various extant factors are possible portents of a needed reinvention. 

Genting owner Lim Kok Thay, just shy of 80 years old in 2030, will surely have handed the reins over to the third generation in the family by then. 

Having worked directly under the stripling Lim Keong Hui, I have no doubt he shares his father’s business acuity but with decidedly different strokes. The millennial Lim looks more inclined to discovering his own unicorn business than filling the shoes in the family’s comparatively antediluvian gambling business. 

Australian James Packer had not shared the penchant for casinos as his late father Kerry did and stepped down from gaming empire Crown Resorts about 10 years after his father’s death.

Might a change in ownership be the tonic for Singapore’s integrated resorts to respond to the threat of new competition?

Regardless, the younger Lim at the helm will bring a fresh pair of eyes and chart a new path for the RWS, even if the business stays in the family. 

As for MBS, there is no certainty the Singapore property will not go on the selling block if the price is right. In 2021, its parent Las Vegas Sands sold its Vegas casinos in a US$6.25 deal, two months after founder Sheldon Adelson died.