Macau’s gambling industry is in for a bumpy ride as structural headwinds in the second half of 2018 will blow the VIP gaming sector off its course, according to analysts.

International brokerage Sanford Bernstein sounded the alarm over a possible “deceleration” of Macau’s VIP gaming sector in the second half of the year due to a number of political and economic factors in mainland China, reported the Macau News Agency.

These factors include instituted cooling measures on Chinese real estate; credit tightening in China; increasing [focus on] regulatory environment in Macau; and continued Chinese government focus on capital outflows in China, among others, according to the report.

Bernstein estimated that the VIP sector growth could slow to 8 percent in 2018.

Hong Kong-listed casino operator Melco Resorts and Entertainment is planning to increase its stake in the Philippines as the country’s gambling industry continues to benefit from the warming relationship between Beijing and Manila.

Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation chairman Andrea Domingo said Melco executives, led by casino mogul Lawrence Ho, and Entertainment Gaming Asia officials, led by Clarence Chung, met with President Rodrigo Duterte last Thursday to discuss future investments in the country.

Domingo recalled Ho and Duterte discussing Melco’s new luxury brand NÜWA, which is set to replace the Crown Towers brand at City of Dreams Manila and City of Dreams Macau on Jan. 16, according to Domingo.

“Lawrence Ho and Clarence Chung (of Entertainment Gaming Asia) merely paid a courtesy call and informed President Duterte of their willingness to increase their investments here,” Domingo told CalvinAyre.com in a statement.

Blockchain experts and industry leaders from around the world are converging in Manila on January 25 for the inaugural Blockchain & Bitcoin Conference Philippines, an event dedicated to cryptocurrency, blockchain and initial coin offerings (ICOs).

The Philippines is the first country in Asia to address the growing interest in the cryptocurrency sector. In February 2017, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) rolled out Circular No. 944, which “recognizes that virtual currency (VC) systems have the potential to revolutionize delivery of financial services, particularly for payments and remittance, in view of their ability to provide faster and more economical transfer of funds, both domestic and international, and may further support financial inclusion.”

That pioneering regulation placed the country on the map alongside countries—like Japan, which allowed the use of virtual currencies as method of payment—that are not terrified of “harnessing innovation,” according to the central bank.

eCommerce meets bCommerce

Australian media groups’ push for exemptions to the government’s siren-to-siren sports betting ad ban gets a boost from the nation’s major sports leagues.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Australia’s Coalition for Major Professional and Participation Sports has thrown their support behind an appeal that will enable radio and television stations across country to broadcast a gambling ad once every two hours during long-form sports or multi-sport competitions.

Under the current ad ban, television and radio stations are prohibited from airing gambling promotions during “all live sports broadcasts” between 5:00 a.m. and 8.30 p.m. This takes effect within five minutes before the start of play to five minutes after the game ended.

The goal, according to government officials, is to reduce children’s exposure to betting ads.

Lee Davy continues his interviews from the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) collaring Liv Boeree to talk about the Dunning-Kruger effect.

PCA Reports: Talking Dunning-Kruger with a Tigress Audio

Nevada casinos enjoyed a serious surge in profitability in their most recent fiscal year, despite only modest gains in revenue over that period.

On Friday, the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) released its annual Nevada Gaming Abstract, which covers the performance of the 272 casinos in the state that grossed $1m or more in gaming revenue in the 12 months ending June 30, 2017.

These 272 casinos generated total revenue of just under $26.2b in FY17, up 3.7% from the previous year, while net income shot up 59% to $1.55b. The NGCB didn’t offer a reason to explain the significant disparity in between the revenue and profit gains. The gaming industry has made a huge turnaround since FY15, which saw net losses of $661.8m.

This disparity was significantly more pronounced at casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, which saw revenue rise 3.9% to $17.7b while profits leaped 191.4% to $814m. Downtown Las Vegas casinos got in on the action, with revenue up 10.3% to $1.2b and profits up 111.3% to $110.3m.

In another installment of reports from the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, Lee Davy, catches up with Barry Greenstein to talk about his love for this event, his role in kickstarting the philanthropy in poker revolution, and his love for Play Money games. 

PCA Reports: Barry Greenstein on Play Money and Philanthropy Audio