This September marks the 20th anniversary of Grand Korea Leisure Co. Ltd (GKL), a milestone the company commemorated with pride. Since its inception in September 2005, GKL’s Seven Luck casinos—operated exclusively for foreign visitors—have welcomed approximately 22 million international guests. In marking this achievement, GKL highlighted its substantial contribution of KRW 740 billion (about USD 531 million) to South Korea’s Tourism Promotion and Development Fund, underscoring its standing as a key player in the nation's tourism outreach efforts.
MGM Resorts CEO Bill Hornbuckle conveyed a strong message from the Bank of America Securities 2025 Gaming & Lodging Conference: Macau’s promotional environment has become more manageable—even as VIP patronage surges—thanks in part to regulatory oversight. He acknowledged, “We got very aggressive on the casino floor… we changed a bunch of things: how we fed people on the floor, how the floor is designed, the padding in the carpet… the lighting, the correlation between how you position the games.” He added, “Fortunately, although it’s always aggressive [in Macau], we haven’t seen it creep out of control… I think there is a check and balance on that.”
MGM Resorts International has revealed it secured full financing for its groundbreaking Japan project—MGM Osaka, the country’s first integrated resort featuring a casino. Sarah Rogers, Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance at MGM Resorts, shared the company will invest around US$300 million this year, followed by US$500–600 million in subsequent years, before tapping into debt funding.
Investment bank Jefferies recently upgraded its forecast for Macau’s 2025 gross gaming revenue (GGR) to MOP 237 billion (approximately US $29.3 billion), aligning above the revised government projection and signaling renewed investor optimism. This upbeat outlook stems from a solid first half of the year, which saw GGR climb 4.4 percent year-on-year to MOP 118.8 billion, driven largely by robust performance in May and June.
Vietnam’s premier developer, Sun Group, has secured approval to lead the development of a monumental US $2 billion integrated resort in the Van Don Economic Zone, Quang Ninh province. This mega-project received in-principle endorsement from Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on June 27, 2025, and was officially greenlit by the Quang Ninh People’s Committee in August 2025.
Author: Janice Chew • Monday, 08/09/2025
