“Casino would work on Saipan but don't expect big investors”

Ben Lee, managing partner of IGamiX Management & Consulting, said Saipan should start small if it wants a casino industry established, and the island should be ready to face stiff competition from Asian destinations with established casino industries such as Macau, Korea, Singapore, Cambodia and the Philippines. But Lee, who came to Saipan at the invitation of the governor, said that despite the competition, a casino industry is “what Saipan needs, I believe, to give tourism a much needed boost right now.”

“Gaming in the region is now viewed as a game changer. So a lot of countries other than Saipan are looking at gaming to actually attract tourism,” Lee said in an interview after his closed-door presentation for the governor and lawmakers on Capital Hill yesterday.

The presentation started at shortly past 10am and lasted until about 12:30pm. Fitial asked lawmakers last week to listen to the casino consultant's presentation before acting on a local bill seeking to legalize casino gambling on Saipan.

Lee said his message to lawmakers is “to seriously consider permitting gambling in Saipan to get the tourism industry to where it should be.”He said a casino industry will “absolutely” benefit the local economy.

“You just have to look at Singapore, Macau as prime examples. Singapore has increased tourism by 20 percent. In Macau, it's unimaginable. Macau is now five times bigger than Las Vegas. In other countries-Cambodia, Vietnam-everybody's looking at gaming to drive tourism and if you don't have it you lose out in the race,” Lee told reporters.

He said Saipan will not compete with big jurisdictions like Macau and Singapore. “You need it [casino industry] because otherwise what's the outlook for Saipan? So I throw that question back at you. I've seen the tourism figure; it's declining year in, year end. What do you have to do to change that? Somebody else asked me the same question, 'can you think of something else that will change that trend?' No,” he said.

Lee's IGamiX Management & Consulting is a well-known Asian gaming consultancy based in Macau. IGamiX has consulted on gaming projects all over Asia, from feasibility reports to greenfield start ups, for a variety of clients ranging from private companies to government bodies. Lee is also a regular speaker on the topic of Asian junket business at major international conferences.

When asked whether he's being hired by the CNMI government as a casino consultant, Lee said “not at this point in time.”