SunCity opening four more VIP rooms in Manila, where proxy betting is all the rage

Macau casino junket operator SunCity Group will open four more VIP rooms in Manila casinos by mid-year, according to a note issued on Monday by Morgan Stanley Research Asia Pacific.

SunCity, whose share of Macau’s VIP market has been estimated at between 25% and 30%, already had a presence at Bloomberry Resorts’ Solaire Resort & Casino. SunCity will be bolstering its Solaire presence as well as expanding to Melco Crown Entertainment’s recently launched City of Dreams Manila property.

With no end in sight to Macau’s gaming revenue slump, SunCity and other junket operators are increasingly looking to other Asian gaming jurisdictions, where Beijing’s scrutiny is (presumably) less intense and VIPs can let their high-rolling impulses run wild.

The junket business suffered a liquidity crisis following last year’s $1.3b heist of junket investor funds. SunCity recently issued 200 shares of SunCity Group Manila to give investors a chance at owning a piece of the company’s growing subsidiary. The junket operator subscribed for half of these shares while the other 100 shares will be available to the public for the low low price of HKD 5m (US $645k) apiece. The offer closes March 31.