Is Dubai going to open a casino or is it just a guess? As per international media sources, Wynn Resorts anticipates being the only operator with a casino in the United Arab Emirates for many years to come, providing it with a dominant position in a market that could potentially generate billions of dollars for the Gulf state.
Craig Billings, the CEO of the firm, said on an earnings call that “it will probably be us and us alone for a multiyear period.” After then, it can develop into a three-way oligopoly or a duopoly.
Is Dubai going to open a casino
The Wynn Al Marjan Island is set to debut in Ras Al Khaimah, an emirate home to more than 450,000 people, in 2027. Its construction is predicted to cost more than $3.9 billion, more than the Burj Al Arab and Atlantis The Palm in nearby Dubai combined.
The General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA), to be formed at the federal level to supervise and implement “strict guidelines” for the country’s gaming industry, was announced by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in September. It was created under the direction of former MGM CEO Jim Murren, which sparked speculations of gambling throughout the country.
Casinos in Dubai
Dubai’s casinos are closed.
This year, MGM’s has spoken out a lot about his hopes of getting a casino license for his long-abandoned three-brand complex in Dubai. Speaking at a convention in Las Vegas last month, they said, we think there will be three or four Casinos in Dubai in the Emirates.” Each ruler makes the choice of what to do and where to do it.
However, Wynn predicts that this won’t occur, at least not in this decade. It is quite unlikely, in Billings’ opinion, that every emirate would ultimately make use of their right to host an integrated resort. This is due to a variety of circumstances, such as population density, peculiarities of culture, and varying degrees of requirement for the additional visits.
Dubai Casino
Revealed this week that the Dubai government has stopped making plans for a Dubai Casino, citing anonymous sources. One rationale put up is that “its tourism sector is already booming.”
Caesars, a prominent participant in UAE gambling, abruptly announced their departure from Dubai a few days after the GCGRA was formed. Since it has been running a non-gaming resort in the emirate since 2018, the company had assumed that the emirate will ultimately allow gambling. Rather, the resort would become a Banyan Tree as part of a new arrangement between Ennismore and government investment corporation Dubai Holding.
Casino in Dubai
Decision maker said that they “just don’t know” whether they would be able to build a casino in Dubai on this week’s MGM earnings call. Furthermore, he said, “Be aware that we are really having a conversation with someone on the ground today. It is dependent upon the desires of a partner, who may also be our present companion.” It has a key place in our imaginations as a result.
Billings, meanwhile, is now waiting for his licenses. He said that Wynn expects the licensing process to include the issuance of a provisional license, which would be followed by a permanent license. And I would expect it to happen soon. That is indeed happening. Everything is going according to plan.
Wynn Resorts expects a simpler loan clearance process.
Billings claims that Wynn would benefit greatly from the GCGRA’s formation since it will help clear up the legal murkiness surrounding gaming in the country and draw in additional capital. “I think that’s really good for the market because it lends a lot of certainty, eliminates a lot of questions that we used to get, and creates a lot of certainty for financing sources and allows us to move forward relatively quickly with the construction financing,” he said.
The first casino in the United Arab Emirates will impose taxes on gaming revenues. According to Julie Cameron-Doe, CFO of Wynn Resorts, a “reasonable” low double-digit blended tax rate would be applied to the gross gaming profits. She made this announcement in May when discussing the forthcoming Wynn Al Marjan Island on a livestream.
It is projected that the gross gaming revenue (GGR) tax rate would range from 10% to 12%.
The 1,500-room integrated resort is expected to provide up to $600 million in adjusted EBITDA annually. In contrast, the storied Wynn Las Vegas’ adjusted EBITDA in 2022 was $801 million.
