Inside Asian Gaming

IAG JUL 2023年7月 亞博匯 56 IN FOCUS AndrewWScott: Dr HoffmanMa, thank you so much for talking to the readers and viewers of IAG and for hosting us here at Ponte 16. To start with, could you tell us a little bit about Success Universe and the history of the company, for those who might not be so familiar with you? Dr Ma: Well, our group used to be a junket operator in the 90s, and we were invited by [Macau concessionaire] SJM to partner with them on this very project, Ponte 16. So, when the new concessions started, we joined with them to build this property together, and we’re the management company of this property. Other than Ponte 16, we also have a travel agency in North America within the listed company as well as a property development investment arm in there. AWS: Success Universe is a 49% partner in Ponte 16 with SJM holding 51%. How does that relationship work on a day-to-day basis? Dr Ma: Obviously SJM has the gaming concession, and within the project they oversee the financial governance. In terms of finance, we report directly to SJM, but we are the operator and look after all marketing of the project. AWS: As the operator, I’m sure you’ve seen a lot of changes since 8 January when the market finally opened up again. What have you noticed about this “new market” we’ve got in terms of demographics and customer preferences? Dr Ma: The whole industry is market-oriented, particularly all these online social media channels that have been built up throughout the years, like the Xiaohongshu (ie. the Little Red Book). That has helped with boosting the travel industry of Macau a lot, so the industry has ramped up – a lot quicker I think than the industry or even the government ever anticipated. That’s good news and has contributed to the growth of the mass market segment for Macau. It’s also the direction the Macau government is pointing to, so I think it has helped the industry to migrate from a 50-50 mix between VIP and mass into 85% mass market now. Even the GGR for the mass market segment has been climbing back almost to pre-COVID levels.