The Philippines has announced the reinstatement of its electronic visa (e-visa) system for Chinese nationals starting November 2025, a move aimed at revitalizing tourism and rebuilding one of its key source markets. Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia-Frasco said the e-visa relaunch is a “strategic and long-overdue step” to enhance visitor convenience and restore pre-pandemic momentum, when China ranked among the country’s top three inbound markets. Authorities expect the measure to streamline travel, shorten processing times, and encourage group travel partnerships between Philippine and Chinese agencies.
Seaport Research Partners has reduced its price targets for several major Asia-focused gaming operators amid macroeconomic uncertainty and a softer-than-expected recovery in China. Analyst Vitaly Umansky noted that Macau’s earlier GGR rally may have led to “overly cautious” market reactions, pushing valuations to levels he considers unjustified. Despite the downgrade, Seaport maintains a positive long-term view on the region, arguing that Macau’s fundamentals remain sound and that the current share prices already factor in much of the downside risk.
Credit ratings agency Moody’s Investors Service has placed the Baa2 issuer rating of Genting Berhad on review for possible downgrade, citing concerns that the company’s announced voluntary offer to acquire the remaining ~50.6 % stake in Genting Malaysia Berhad will materially weaken its credit metrics. According to Moody’s, Genting’s adjusted debt/EBITDA is expected to rise to about 5.1 times in 2025 under the deal scenario—well above the agency’s 4.0 times downgrade threshold, and from an already weak base.
Governments in Southeast Asia are ramping up efforts to dismantle trans-national cyber-crime operations that overlap with human trafficking, forced labour and online scam networks. This has become a regional priority involving countries such as Cambodia and Myanmar, which are increasingly being used as hubs or safe-zones for these illicit operations.
The Supreme Court of India (SC) has taken up a petition seeking a nationwide ban on online gambling and betting platforms that ostensibly function under the guise of e-sports and social gaming. The petition was filed by the Centre for Accountability and Systemic Change (CASC), which argues that these platforms exploit legal gaps, resulting in “widespread social and economic harm”. The petition names multiple Union ministries and the app store operators Google India Pvt. Ltd. and Apple Inc. as respondents, asking for a direction to interpret the recently enacted Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 (POGA 2025) in a manner that prohibits online money-games.
Author: Janice Chew • Monday, 20/10/2025
