Macau's casino-owning Ho family runs into trouble in Portugal

There have been rumours in Portugal that the company founded by the late Macau casino billionaire Stanley Ho Hung-Sun may lose its licence to run the country's two most famous gambling establishments, Casino Lisboa and Casino Estoril.

According to a report from the Bloomberg news agency published on Tuesday, the company known as Estoril Sol SGPS SA is in charge of both of these prestigious locations, but its current 15-year concession will expire at the end of this year. According to reports, Portugal's Ministry of Economy initiated a licencing campaign in August, and the country has already received proposals from the present operator and a mystery third party.

Conforming to lower authority:

According to the news outlet, the Ho family's Sociedade de Turismo e Diversoes de Macau SA organisation owns 57.8% of Finansol, the holding company that controls Estoril Sol SGPS SA. This second firm is the parent of Macau casino behemoth SJM Holdings Limited, and it was recently rumoured that it had stated that their offer for a Portugal licence was worth less than that of an unnamed opponent.

According to a report, Finansol has released a statement.

"Overall, the competing offer had higher value than the offer presented by our own subsidiary."

Uneasy triad:

Authorities at the Servicos de Regulacao e Inspecao de Jogos (SRIJ) hope to have awarded the new 15-year licences, complete with sole five-year extension clauses, for the Casino Lisboa and Casino Estoril by the end of next month, after issuing multiple extensions due to the coronavirus. Estoril Sol SGPS SA also holds the licence for the smaller Casino da Povoa venue in northern Portugal, which does not expire until 2025 but is rumoured to be in jeopardy if the present owner loses.

Adventures in entrepreneurship:

Reportedly one of the key actors in turning the former Portuguese colony of Macau into the world's most profitable casino hotspot, Ho died in 2020 at the age of 98. The guy allegedly dubbed as "the king of gambling" owned multiple Portuguese properties and had the licence to operate the largest gaming facility in Europe, Casino Estoril.

Rooted in the family:

Bloomberg said that Estoril Sol SGPS SA's current Chair, 60-year-old Pansy Ho Chiu-King, is the eldest daughter of Ho's second wife and that the company's expected total year revenues for 2021 had dropped by around 2.2% year-over-year to around $132 million. Despite the fact that this firm allegedly owns a number of local internet gaming and sportsbetting licences, it may begin 2023 with only one land-based casino in Europe.