The owners of the Russia-based casino Tigre de Cristal, which is situated in the country’s east Primorye gaming zone revealed a substantial increase in the venue’s high-roller play over the first six months of the year.
Earlier this week, Summit Ascent Holdings, listed in Hong Kong, which currently owns a 60% stake in the company which controls Tigre de Cristal has revealed that the casino’s total operating revenue amounted to HK$257.3 million (about $32.8 million) in the six months which ended on June 30th. The result represented a 24% increase from the revenue which was reported by the casino a year earlier.
As the owners of Tigre de Cristal explained, the massive increase in the overall operating revenue was a result of higher VIP customers’ spending. The high-roller revenue increase also comes at a time when companies which operate in the global gambling hub Macau have reported a decline in their VIP gambling revenue as high rollers in the region seem to be more cautious about their spending.
Summit Ascent Holdings shared in a statement that its new strategic direction has led to both the casino’s slot and mass table gaming segments generate a stable growth in the first six months from January to June 2019, with the VIP business also marking a strong rebound in comparison to its performance over the same period a year ago.
It seems that Hong Kong-listed Summit Ascent Holdings is to now focus primarily on attracting international VIP players to the Tigre de Cristal casino.
Tigre de Cristal Casino Also Unveils Second Stage of Construction
The Tigre de Cristal casino, which operates in the Far East Integrated Entertainment Zone of Primorye, currently hosts 250 gaming machines and 50 table games. The complex also features various other amenities including retail shopping and dining options, as well as a 121-room five-star hotel.
The rapid increase of the casino’s total operating revenue is also believed to have come as a result of the Macau leading high-roller junket operator Suncity acquiring a 28% stake in Summit Ascent. The last few years have seen the company’s transition from an average gaming intermediary to a leading gambling operator in the region.
Also, the Chief Executive Officer of Suncity Group, Alvin Chua, who currently owns stakes in Tigre de Cristal and a multi-billion Vietnam-based gambling resort, seems to be redirecting his most affluent customers to his own resorts instead of the ones in Macau. So, while the Government in Macau has been investigating on high-roller junket operators which have been bringing high-roller players from mainland China to the gambling hub, the Russian casino appears to be expanding its premier segment revenue.
The owners of the gambling venue also revealed that the second phase of the construction of the Tigre de Cristal is set to be finalized in early 2022. The gambling facility is to be redesigned as part of the second phase of construction, in which Suncity Group Holdings has played an important role. The number of hotel rooms offered by the complex is expected to more than double at the end of the first part of the second stage. Gambling space is also planned to be expanded.
