A new budget deal was reached by New York Governor Kathy Hochul and legislative leaders last week. If the budget is voted on by the full legislature, it could mean that the New York City area will see the construction of three new casinos.

Voters already approved allowing seven new casinos in the state in 2013. While four of them have already been built in the upstate areas, there is still room for three more.

Despite the fact that casino operators in New York pay the highest tax rates in the country, many have expressed an interest in obtaining a license from state authorities to obtain a license to run one of the three NYC area casinos. Under the budget deal, an initial licensing fee will cost at least $500 million.

Bloomberg reports that some of the biggest names in the nation, including Las Vegas Corps., Wynn Resorts and Hard Rock International, have been scouting the state to find the perfect location.

State Senator Joe Addabbo, who heads the committee on racing, gaming and wagering said, however, that two operators have an advantage over their rivals in the bidding war. Both MGM Resorts International and Genting Group already run slot machines at the racetracks and could simply expand on existing facilities.

“It’s the most popular hypothetical,” Addabbo says. “People don’t want a lot of new gaming sites.”

Plans to open an $800 million casino resort near Incheon, South Korea have been delayed for the second time. The Chinese building company, Guanghzhou R&F Properties, was reportedly given an official extension of one year by the South Korean government. Last year, it was given a three-year extension, after citing the pandemic as a reason that it could not meet current deadlines.  Analysts believe that Guanghzhou will eventually request a third postponement.

The newest one-year extension comes with conditions, however. The construction company has promised to increase its investment in the project by a further five percent.

The massive resort, which will be located near the airport and on the coast, was due to open last spring. Plans include a massive casino floor that will be home to 700 slot machines and 150 gaming tables. One of the conditions will be that only foreigners will be allowed to play in the casino.

The resort will also include a conference center, family amusement park, an arena, retail facilities and restaurants.

Caesars Entertainment Corporation originally owned a 50% stake in the South Korea project. Last February, however, Guangzhou paid Caesars an undisclosed amount to acquire this stake, and the Chinese group is now the sole owner.  Guanghzhou is on the lookout for a new partner but has so far been unsuccessful in finding an investor.

Although it was a tight win, Brazilian legislators voted in Bill 442/1191, essentially ending a nearly 80-year ban on gambling in the South American country.

The February 23rd special meeting saw deputies vote 246-202 in favor of making certain forms of gambling legal in Brazil.  It has taken nearly 30 years and countless amendments to move this bill from the time it was initially introduced to finally seeing it go through this week.

Gambling variations that will now become legal in Brazil include:

• Casinos
• Online gambling
• Horse racing
• Slot machines
• Bingo
• Jogo de Bicho.

The bill allows casinos to be established in all 26 states, but they will need to be part of an integrated resort. Larger states, such as Sao Paolo, can have three casinos.

Operators will bid for casino licenses, which will be granted to the highest bidders. Operators may apply for up to five licenses in total across the entire country, and may not hold two licenses in the same state.

Each operator must pay a license fee of $120,000 per establishment.

Online casino operators need to pay the same for each domain.

Players will be allowed to enjoy online casino games of chance such as online slots and online roulette.

The government intends blocking unlicensed offshore websites. Gamblers will not be allowed to gamble on credit and will need to pay a 15% tax on any winnings.

Some of the biggest firms that operate in ‘Asia’s Las Vegas’, the Chinese enclave of Macau, saw their share prices slide as authorities begin overhauling the gambling rules that govern the territory.

Companies such as Sands China, Melco Entertainment and Wynn Macau all experienced a drop in share prices on the stock markets. The BBC reported that some of the biggest gambling firms on the Hong Kong market lost around $18 billion in value.

There are genuine fears for the Macau gambling market, considering that casino licenses are due to be put up for rebidding next year.

Share prices began plummeting after an announcement by Lei Wai Nong, Macau’s secretary for economy and finance, who said that the gambling industry would be undergoing a 45-day consultation period.  

He said that the consultation would examine nine different areas, including the number of licenses offered to operators, employee welfare and improved regulation. He also said that the idea of government officials supervising day to day casino operations would be properly considered. 

The Macau government has been on a steady path to increase its control on local casinos in the enclave, and recently the number of gaming inspectors was doubled. 

Macau was badly hit by the coronavirus, and visitors have only now started to slowly return to the casinos.