Inside Asian Gaming

IAG NOV 2019年11月亞博匯 52 LAWRENCE HO CHAIRMAN AND CEO Melco Resorts and Entertainment CHAIRMAN AND CEO Melco International Development DIRECTOR Studio City International 何猷龍 主席兼行政總裁 新濠博亞娛樂 主席兼行政總裁 新濠國際 董事 新濠影匯 CLAIMS TO FAME • Management changes in the midst of a successful Macau rebound puts him in a more strategic role • RefocusedMelco’s Japan integrated resort drive on Yokohama • Acquiring 19.99% of former partner Crown Resorts with an eye toward taking control 名成事跡 • 在一次澳門的成功反彈中進行的管理層變更，讓他坐上一個更具戰 略意義的位置 • 加強新濠對於在橫濱發展綜合度假村的推進 • 收購前夥伴皇冠度假集團19.99%股權，並且有望取得控制權 3 MORE than hisMacau counterparts, perhapsmore than anyone on this list, Melco’s Lawrence Ho is a gambler. That’s not to say that you’ll find him seated at a Melco baccarat table in Macau, Manila or Cyprus or that the 42-year-old Chairman and CEO of all three Melco listed companies makes rash decisions. But it does mean that Ho takes chances, not in the context of modern gaming where long-run outcomes are certain, but genuine risks where key factors are unknowable and results unpredictable. That’s gambling, and Ho makes serious bets. He bet US$250 million on "The House of Dancing Water" and won. He bet US$1 billion on Morpheus, a 700-room boutique hotel for the 21st century, which started slow from its June 2018 opening but now leads the revival of Macau flagship integrated resort City of Dreams and solidifies its premium positioning. Not every bet pays off, but Melco consistently produces the most innovative IRs in Asia, if not worldwide. It doesn’t copy resorts in Vegas or across the bridge. Melco products are unique, and that’s a reflection of Ho and the corporate culture he’s crafted. When Chief Operating Officer Ted Chan left in late 2016, Ho bet big on himself. He instituted a new management system that eliminated the COO position and put him at the center of operations. Those changes coincided with James Packer selling down Crown Resorts’ share of NASDAQ listed Melco Crown Entertainment, and, in May 2017, completely exiting what Ho lauds as “the most successful partnership in gaming history.” Ho’s nearly three years of direct operations involvement 2019 POWER 50 POWER SCORE 權能指數 : 6,298 POSITION LAST YEAR 去年排名 : 3