Social media platform ban harmful to Macau casinos operated by Americans
US President Donald Trump’s ban on use of the Chinese social messaging service WeChat could harm American casino operators in Macau and disrupt their future in the territory, analysts say to the South China Morning Post.
Trump issued an executive order last Thursday that will make it illegal for US citizens and corporations to carry out “any transaction related to WeChat."
The request is due to take effect 45 days from that date and was issued on the same day of a similar request to ban TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance.
“Most of the players in Macau are Chinese mainlanders. How do you communicate with them without WeChat?” said Carlos Lobo, a lawyer at Weir and Associates.
Three of the six casino operators in Macau – Wynn Resorts, MGM Resorts International and Las Vegas Sands – are American and each operates in Macau through subsidiaries.
Lobo, a former legal adviser to Sands China, whose parent company is Las Vegas Sands, said the ban on WeChat, a widely used messaging app, could be an unexpected fluke for non-American casino operators like Melco , SJM Holdings and Galaxy.
Ben Lee, managing partner of IGamiX, a Macau-based consulting firm focused on the gaming industry, estimated that between 80 and 90 percent of Macau’s gross gaming revenues come from the Chinese mainland.
WeChat is an important channel of communication between Macau casinos and these customers.
