50 VIP rooms to close, says Chinese newspaper

The city may see some 50 VIP rooms close in the future, Chinese newspaper Macao Daily reported yesterday, claiming that the minimal rolling chips turnover required per table for opening a VIP room had also been decreased to 200 million patacas (US$25 million), following the slowdown in the gaming industry.
The newspaper quoted an unidentified source as saying that between 40 and 50 VIP rooms in the city may be closed in the future driven by the integration of the market. According to the source, the number of VIP rooms had surged by nearly 100 establishments in the past two to three years following the new openings of casinos.
However, the source said that the adjustment for the VIP gaming industry may be a good thing as the operations of VIP rooms had not been well regulated following the rapid development of recent years. The source also told the Chinese newspaper that the operations of many VIP rooms are not solid enough to be able to chase up on loans under the current difficult circumstances.
In addition to the number of VIP establishments to be shut down, the slowdown of the gaming industry had also led gaming corporations to lower their entry requirements for those wishing to open a VIP room on their properties.
According to the newspaper, the minimum amount of rolling chip turnover per table required to open a new VIP room was between 300 and 400 million patacas. This amount had been reduced to 200 million patacas, the original amount before the VIP industry became such a lucrative business.
Business Daily contacted two junket operators in the city to clarify whether the VIP industry was experiencing the circumstances as reported by the Chinese newspaper but there was no reply from them before the story went to press.