In an aggressive move to claw back lost market share, Galaxy Entertainment Group, the Macau gaming company controlled by the family of Hong Kong property and construction tycoon Lui Che-woo plans to more than double VIP gaming capacity by forging an alliance with a large high-roller junket operator.
The management said yesterday that the flagship StarWorld casino hotel was adding up to 100 new gaming tables in a 'jumbo-sized VIP facility', up from its current 69 VIP tables, under a deal to be modelled on rival casino operator Melco PBL Entertainment's recent co-operation with a VIP junket operator owned by locally listed A-Max Holdings.
Market sources yesterday identified Galaxy's new 'jumbo' junket partner as the Neptune group, a locally listed firm that invests in VIP gaming junkets, taking customers to casinos at StarWorld, Venetian Macao and Sands.
'I'll have to hold back some of the answers until we announce the deal in more detail in the next two to three weeks, but we are going to put in a jumbo facility for up to 100 tables,' chief operating officer David Banks said yesterday at the firm's annual results media conference.