GGRAsia – Donaco, Suncity resume gaming in Vietnam after Covid alert

Donaco, Suncity resume gaming in Vietnam after Covid alert

May 13, 2020 Newsdesk Latest News, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck

Australia-listed casino operator Donaco International Ltd and Macau-based junket investor Suncity Group have separately announced resumption of their respective gaming businesses in Vietnam. The steps come after the country’s decision to allow non-essential businesses – except for nightclubs and karaoke parlours – to reopen from May 8.

In a Wednesday filing to the Australian Securities Exchange, Donaco said casino operations at its Aristo International Hotel, located in Lao Cai, Vietnam, close to that country’s border with China, had “officially reopened”on what the firm called a “limited basis”. The border to China remains closed, according to Donaco’s announcement.

Several casino operators in Vietnam, including Donaco, had closed their gaming venues on a temporary basis from April 1, in line with the national government’s so-called social distancing order that shuttered non-essential businesses in order to contain the spread of a novel coronavirus, and the Covid-19 infection associated with it.

As of 7am on Wednesday, Vietnam had 288 confirmed cases of infection linked to the coronavirus, of which 148 were designated as ‘imported’ from outside its borders, Vietnam News Agency reported. The media outlet said that the country has had no new cases of community spread of the virus for 27 consecutive days.

Donaco stated in its Wednesday filing the company was “optimistic” the Covid-19 situation would “continue to improve” in the region served by the Aristo property. The firm added the reopening was a “positive step towards the resumption of normal operations”.

Separately, Macau-based junket investor Suncity Group announced in a May 9 social media post that the operation of its VIP gaming club at the Crowne Plaza Danang resort in Vietnam had resumed. Business at the club had been paused since April 1 on the basis the junket brand had been “in compliance” with a local government social-distancing directive, according to a Suncity announcement on March 31.

Vietnam’s Corona Resort and Casino – located on Phu Quoc island – said on its official website that operations at the resort and gaming facilities recommenced on May 8 after a month-long pause amid the Covid-19 pandemic.