Chief Executive Officer
Macau Slot Co Ltd
POWER SCORE: 577
POSITION LAST YEAR : Nil
CLAIMS TO FAME
- Oversees Macau’s only licensed sports betting operator
Not only holding a monopoly on sports betting in Macau but also on online gambling of any form (horse racing aside), Macau Slot Co Ltd was founded in the mid-1980s under Stanley Ho’s STDM gambling empire.
First imagined as a provider of lotteries, the company was granted Macau’s only franchise to accept betting on football in 1998 and added basketball two years later. In 2002, when the Macau SAR Government was handing out concessions to casino operators, Macau Slot became holder of Macau’s only sports betting concession – a concession it holds to this day.
Exactly how long that will last remains to be seen: Macau Slot was granted a five-year license extension in 2016 which expires on 5 June 2021, about a year before the SAR’s six casino concessions are due for re-tender.
In the meantime, CEO Stephen Ho – appointed Macau Slot CEO in 2009 – oversaw profit of MOP$154.8 million (US$19.3 million) in 2019, down 30% on 2018 numbers but significantly higher than the first year of its current license term (2016) when profit came to MOP$117.9 million (US$14.7 million) on revenue of just under MOP$700 million (US$87.7 million).
The idea of liberalizing Macau’s sports betting industry has long been touted as a means of diversifying the casino economy, but with Macau Slot’s deeply ingrained connections only time will tell whether that dream becomes a reality.
For the full list of 2020 Asian Gaming Power 50 winners, click here.
