No backing down: Macau gov’t stands firm on table cap stance

The government of Macau is not backing down on its policy of capping the number of casino tables allowed in the city state.

Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong VaiTac met with representatives of Wynn Macau and the chief of Macau’s gaming regulator last Sunday to discuss the issue, GGRAsia reported. During the meeting, Leong said the government is “firmly” standing by its cap, which limits the total number of tables to 3 percent compound annual expansion until 2022.

“Those policies cannot be changed on a whim,” Leong said, according to the report, quoting a government press release.

Last week, Steve Wynn lambasted Macau officials and their “rather mystical policies” that had become a major issue for casino operators. In an analyst call for Wynn Resorts Q3 earnings report last Thursday, he said the city state’s table cap was the “single most counterintuitive and irrational decision ever made,” which will only “undermine and scuttle” the gambling industry.