INDUSTRY OPINION 48
Sudhir H. Kalé*
Taking stock of the global casino industry What does the immediate future hold for the global gaming industry?
I
see five important developments that will shape industry fortunes: (1) Continuing or growing restrictions on customers from Mainland China; (2) Overall depressed global economic outlook that will significantly curb travel and entertainment; (3) Continued restrictions on patron numbers and venue management in most jurisdictions; (4) Added capacity and competition in some jurisdictions; and (5) Deteriorating customer loyalty. Chinese Government Restrictions China’s stringent policing of currency outflow for gambling purposes and its proposed crackdown on Mainland Chinese traveling abroad for gambling could not have come at a more inopportune time. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism in China stated in late August that “casinos in overseas cities attract Chinese tourists to go abroad for gambling activities, disrupting the order of China’s outbound tourism market, and endangering the
Asia Gaming Briefings | December 2020
personal and property safety of Chinese citizens.” China also wants to put a stop to the underground banking system that many of its citizens use for access to foreign currency for gambling. It is no secret that most Asian and Asia-facing casinos rely heavily on Chinese clientele to make their business viable. The contribution of Chinese consumers to the global gaming industry is huge, both in customer numbers and in revenues. By choking the access to money flowing out of China and making it more difficult for Chinese punters to gamble overseas, the casino industry in most parts of the world could become perennially handicapped. Depressed Economic Outlook According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), global economic growth is projected at minus 4.9 percent in 2020, 1.9 percentage points below the April 2020 World Economic Outlook (WEO) forecast. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a more negative impact
