SINGAPORE'S two casinos, in operation for just over a year, are poised to overtake a name synonymous with gambling the world over: Las Vegas.
Their stunning success was highlighted by Mr Frank Fahrenkopf, president of the American Gaming Association, on the sidelines of a gaming conference in Macau yesterday.
Mr Fahrenkopf predicted that the casinos at Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) and Marina Bay Sands (MBS) would see combined revenues of US$6.4 billion (S$7.9 billion) this year, up from US$5.1 billion last year.
The revenue for Las Vegas last year was US$5.8 billion.
Macau, with about three dozen casinos, is the world's largest gaming hub after leapfrogging Las Vegas in 2006.
The Chinese city, which attracts a large number of wealthy players from the Asian region, raked in US$23.5 billion in casino revenue last year. The figure is expected to grow by between 25 per cent and 50 per cent this year, said Mr Fahrenkopf.
It is going to be an extremely good year in Singapore and Macau, he was quoted as saying by Associated Press.
If Mr Fahrenkopf's prediction about Singapore is accurate, the world's second-largest gaming hub after Macau would also be in Asia.
Extracted from The Straits Times, 8 June 2011
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