Genting gets casino license

The Singapore government has awarded Genting Bhd., Asia's largest publicly traded casino operator, and its Singapore unit a casino license, giving them the go-signal to cash in on the holiday crowd.

A Bloomberg report stated Genting gained 0.9 percent to 6.84 ringgit at 10:55 a.m. in Kuala Lumpur trading Monday, set for its steepest gain since Jan. 15.

Its unit Genting Singapore Plc, likewise advanced 1.8 percent to S$1.13 in Singapore trading, the highest since Jan. 25, after surging 5.4 percent earlier.

"It's show time," ECM Libra Capital Sdn. said in another report. Genting looks at opening a week before the Lunar New Year holidays that start Feb. 14 "to capture the higher margin mass market," it stated.

Genting has a $4.5 billion resort on Singapore's Sentosa island, as part of the city-state's plan to lure 17 million visitors and triple annual tourism revenue to S$30 billion ($21 billion) by 2015.

The license will thus give Genting a headstart as its rival Las Vegas Sands Corp. is not scheduled to open its gaming resort in downtown Singapore until April.

Genting "will take the lion's share of the Singaporean gaming market which we value at S$4 billion," ECM said.

The government has awarded two sites for casino resorts and said it is holding off new competition for at least 10 years.

Four hotels and 10 restaurants at Genting's Singapore resort began accepting guests on Jan. 20.