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Samoa, a country with only $3,500 per annual capita, is the second biggest investor in Vietnam this year? Amazing, must be some rich Vietnamese expats bring the money home.
 
Samoa, a country with only $3,500 per annual capita, is the second biggest investor in Vietnam this year? Amazing, must be some rich Vietnamese expats bring the money home.


A bit strange, I admid.
There are about 4.5 million overseas Vietnamese. Last year we sent appr. $US 20 billion as remittance and investments to our homeland.
 
Vietnam edges towards casino capitalism
By Karl D John

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To roll or not to roll, that is the multi-billion dollar question Vietnam's ruling Communist Party now weighs. The casino quandary hinges on how a nominally communist state that still deploys revolutionary rhetoric can openly embrace such a free-wheeling capitalist concept.

Vietnam's rulers have long grappled with the casino concept. Party hardliners have said legalizing gambling will open a Pandora's box of social evils, something the communist revolution vowed to eradicate. More moderate officials have pointed to the potential financial boon of more tourism and tax revenues.

A breakthrough in the ideological struggle came in 2008 when Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung almost halfway into his first term of office approved a Las Vegas-style casino integrated resort. The US$4.2 billion Ho Tram Strip, under a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer banner, is now under construction and situated about 80 miles (128.7 kilometers) from Ho Chi Minh City.

Since, five other casino-style resorts have been licensed across the country. Interestingly, four are located in the country's more conservative northern region. Two of these are situated within a stone's throw of the Vietnam-China border gate, strategically positioned to profit from gambling-mad Chinese. The Genting Group from Malaysia is a partner in the Lao Cai facility and a Hong Kong company is a partner at the facility at Mong Cai.

The latest entry is an American-backed resort in the middle of the country at Danang, which operates under the same management contract of the northern Mong Cai facility. Twice a week, Chinese punters are flown in by charter flights from Kunming, Guangxi and Hong Kong. Ironically, they land on the same runway where B-52 bombers were launched to bomb Hanoi during the American War.

In the official lexicon, casinos do not exist in Vietnam. However, "entertainment centers" with "bonus games" for foreigners are allowed to exist with proper licenses. This generally means a room dedicated to a limited number of table games, including Roulette, Baccarat, Blackjack, Tai Sai and also slot machines. Besides these purpose-built facilities, some hotels are licensed to have a room containing slots and electronic games.

The first of these casino-style entertainment centers was established by Macau's gambling czar Stanley Ho, situated about two hours from Hanoi at Do Son on the outskirts of Haiphong City. Presumably, the "experiment" was located close enough for top Party officials to visit for monitoring purposes.

All gambling operations in Vietnam are formed under a joint venture arrangement. The Royal International facility owned and operated by a group of Taiwanese investors at Halong Bay developed the model by "equalizing" (ie public listing on the Vietnam Stock Exchange) its operation in July 2007.

Like China, Vietnam does not allow its citizens to gamble within the country. Would-be punters are forced into accepting a casino junket, where gamblers are flown to an area where legalized gambling is available. They are booked into a hotel-casino at the junket company's expense in exchange for a cut of the gamblers' turnover from the casino.

Game changer


Rumors run rife that a draft decree on gambling will soon be put before the prime minister. Foreign investors weighing possible casino opportunities in Vietnam have expressed their hopes that locals will be allowed to gamble. Party and government watchers, however, believe such a move is at least 10 years away.

Macau's and Singapore's success at extracting big revenues from a small number of tourist arrivals through the effective targeting of high rollers will give encouragement to Vietnamese officials to maintain its ban on locals gambling. At the same time, it is generally accepted that casinos would boost significantly tourism and tax revenues at a time of fiscal concern.

"You just have to look at Singapore and Macau as prime examples. Singapore has increased tourism by 20%. Macau is now five times bigger than Las Vegas [in gaming revenue]. In other countries like Cambodia and Vietnam, everybody's looking at gaming to drive tourism and if you don't have it, you lose out in the race," said Ben Lee, managing partner of IGamiX Management & Consulting Ltd.

Still, foreign interest in Vietnam's gaming potential is growing. Casino tycoon Sheldon Adelson of Las Vegas Sands recently visited the country and offered to build two integrated resort (IR) complexes with a total investment of US$6 billion. His key requirement for the complexes, which would comprise hotels, restaurants, exhibition centers, shipping malls, spas, theaters and museums, was that they would be located in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

The IRs propose to follow in the footsteps of similar developments in Malaysia and Singapore. The first recognized IR sprung up in the early 1980's when Genting developed a casino in Malaysia with a variety of leisure and entertainment facilities. Singapore's Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sand commenced operations in 2010 and already earn more than the Las Vegas Strip.

Minister of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh recently said that some foreign investors are seeking a new policy that will allow locals to enter casinos but that it is not up for discussion. "Casinos can help attract more foreign tourists and boost economic growth, but they have to be managed well to make sure locals do not participate in gambling," he recently said.

Other gaming areas are apparently open to negotiation. There are indications that the government will soon legalize sports gambling to limit the social damage caused by underground gambling syndicates.

Finance Minister Vuong Dinh Hue recently visited Singapore to study how sports betting works there. On his return, he said Vietnam could learn from Singapore's example in setting up a legal and organizational framework for large-scale betting operations.

Some have interpreted his comments as a top leadership signal towards a more tolerant approach to gaming. Under current laws, only prime minister Dung has the authority to approve new casino licenses. Recently confirmed to another five-year term of office and with the country facing renewed economic strains, it's a gamble many foreign investors think he should take.

Karl D John is Chief Expert at Asia Trade Experts (Why Asia?). He has more than a decade of experience in Vietnam and is currently based in the United Kingdom. He may be reached at karl.john@AsiaTradeExperts.com.

Asia Times Online :: Vietnam edges towards casino capitalism
 
Singapore and Macau, be aware VN is scheduled to open one of largest casino resorts in Asia.
Competion can begin, guest now has more choices.
 

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MGM Ho Tram Strip scheduled to open in 2013 (City of Vung Tau)


Amenities

MGM Grand Resort and Casino, Ho Tram Amenities (Phase 1)

- Five-star luxury hotel with 492 rooms and 58 suites
- High-end retail shopping
- Food and beverage facilities that are a destination unto themselves, including a combination of contemporary restaurants along with celebrity chef restaurants
- Live entertainment
- Landscaped gardens and spectacular water features
- Exclusive pool with beach cabanas and pool bar
- Gaming floor with approximately 10,000 square metres of public area featuring:
- 90 table games providing Baccarat, Blackjack, Sic Bo, Pai Gow, and Poker
- 500 slot machines/electronic table games
- An exclusive VIP area, serviced by tour groups and junket operators, with private lounges and terrace gaming rooms.
- Loyalty VIP lounge and registration facility
 
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What is the potential for Vietnam to get in the big leagues of international casino gambling like Macao and Las Vegas?
 
What is the potential for Vietnam to get in the big leagues of international casino gambling like Macao and Las Vegas?
I don't know about Macao but people don't go to Vegas just for gambling. Casinos are available everywhere in the U.S. People go to Vegas because of the great crowd, shows, food, bars, shopping, golf, spas, nearby attraction ...sex. Gambling has never been a part of me whenver I go to Vegas. :P

I don't see much potential for the gambling business to blossom in Viet Nam. Why would foreigners have to travel from far away to come to Viet Nam just to go into the casinos? :what:
 
Under the regulations of VN, casino's area is only allowed <3% of the complexes's area.

I think Vietnam should allow Las Vegas invests the complexes in Vietnam and allows local people to play with conditions to limit the number of local people can participate [eg local people to buy tickets at the door 100USD such as Singapore]
In fact VN government can not forbid VN people to gamble in Singapore, Macao, Cambodia ...
 
Under the regulations of VN, casino's area is only allowed <3% of the complexes's area.

I think Vietnam should allow Las Vegas invests the complexes in Vietnam and allows local people to play with conditions to limit the number of local people can participate [eg local people to buy tickets at the door 100USD such as Singapore]
In fact VN government can not forbid VN people to gamble in Singapore, Macao, Cambodia ...
if the Vietnamese government allows local Vietnamese to gamble, there is no need for foreigner investors like MGM to come to Viet Nam. The Vietnamese state-owned enterprises would open their own casinos and pocket 100% of the revenues/profits themselves
 
if the Vietnamese government allows local Vietnamese to gamble, there is no need for foreigner investors like MGM to come to Viet Nam. The Vietnamese state-owned enterprises would open their own casinos and pocket 100% of the revenues/profits themselves


I disagree. Foreign investors bring money and experience. Both lack in VN.

Nein nein nein nein nein!!!

-- Hitler


Doch doch doch!
Why Hitler?
 
I disagree. Foreign investors bring money and experience. Both lack in VN.




Doch doch doch!
Why Hitler?

You are an idiot if you think building a Casino gives Vietnam experience. LOL. Casino in a poor country like Vietnam is nothing short of insulting. Vietnamese communists aren't really smart as their counterpart in China. These casino will destroys countless of families. The rich Vietnamese who doesn't have a single patriotic bone in their body spend their ill-gotten gains in these Foreign run casino instead of investing in their own people. The only thing casino provides is destructions of wealth by the majority to enrich a minority and offers no valuable experience except for dealing cards. So if Vietnamese people aspire to card dealer at casino, then this is great news.

Wealth from these Casino will be funnel back to their Jewish backer like MGM and Sheldon Adelson.

I doubt Vietnam will rival Singapore or Macau. Have you been to Vietnam? I am Vietnamese and I have been to Vietnam many times. I feel sad every time I have to go back their and see little kids and old women selling lotto tickets for a living. This news is just shameful.

To build a casino before you builds roads and infrastructures is just ******* stupid. I am not surprise these corrupt Vietnam Cong agreed to it. They probably got a bunch of kick-backs and sent their kids to America to study to funnel their money to the US. This is how fucked up these people are.

Vietnam has a disease that have plaque it for centuries and that is the nepotistic gene, which is why Vietnam is in such bad shape. These VietCong need to be hanged at the stake for betraying of their own people. I don't understand how people can think this is good news is beyond me.
 
Vietnam has a disease that have plaque it for centuries and that is the nepotistic gene, which is why Vietnam is in such bad shape. These VietCong need to be hanged at the stake for betraying of their own people. I don't understand how people can think this is good news is beyond me.

Jobless and find nothing to do in US ?? then let shoot your president again instead of hanging VC for fun :sniper:
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