{"id":777046776,"date":"2026-08-28T07:44:54","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T10:44:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/?p=777046776"},"modified":"2026-08-28T08:15:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T11:15:27","slug":"south-korea-casino-executives-warn-regulatory-changes-could-threaten-ir-investment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/south-korea-casino-executives-warn-regulatory-changes-could-threaten-ir-investment","title":{"rendered":"South Korea casino executives warn regulatory changes could threaten IR investment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Executives from Inspire Entertainment Resort and Paradise Co voiced concerns over proposed higher tourism levies and licensing reforms.
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South Korea.- Executives from two of South Korea\u2019s integrated resort operators have warned that proposed changes to the country\u2019s casino regulatory framework could put further pressure on the sector and undermine future investment. The concerns were raised during a roundtable organised by local newspaper The Korea Times on Wednesday following proposals to amend the Tourism Promotion Act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposed reforms include raising the maximum contribution<\/a> to the Tourism Promotion and Development Fund from 10 per cent to 15 per cent of casino revenue, introducing a five-year licence renewal system and requiring prior government approval for transfers of business ownership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kang Dae-suk<\/strong>, assistant vice president of legal and government affairs at Inspire Entertainment Resort<\/strong>, questioned the timing and scale of the proposed measures, noting the significant investment required to develop the integrated resort. \u201cWe invested nearly 2 trillion won (US$1.45bn) to build a world-class resort on Yeongjong Island based on government assurances of steady support,\u201d Kang said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He added that Inspire had accumulated a deficit of nearly KRW600bn (US$431m) by last year and was borrowing to meet its annual tourism fund obligations. According to Kang, a higher levy could create additional challenges<\/a> for the resort\u2019s planned refinancing of more than KRW1 trillion (US$719m) next year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf financial institutions view this industry as unstable due to arbitrary regulatory hikes, our refinancing costs will soar,\u201d Kang said, warning that higher costs could ultimately affect operating expenditure, employment and investment in non-gaming facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paradise Group also raised concerns over the potential impact of the proposed framework on integrated resorts. Lee Jong-myoung<\/strong>, executive director of communications, highlighted the need for continued investment in non-gaming facilities, including conventions, hotels and entertainment, to maintain the competitiveness of integrated resorts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIntegrated resorts cannot maintain competitiveness without constantly reinvesting in non-gaming facilities such as conventions, luxury hotels and entertainment,\u201d Lee said. He noted that Paradise City faced significant losses following its 2017 opening before recently moving into a small profit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inspire and Paradise City are both located on Yeongjong Island, near Incheon International Airport.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n\t\t\tSee also:<\/span><\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\tSee also:<\/span> South Korea casino group reiterates opposition to proposed tourism levy hike and licence changes<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Executives from Inspire Entertainment Resort and Paradise Co voiced concerns over proposed higher tourism levies and licensing reforms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":226,"featured_media":777030734,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"is_press_release":false,"is_interview":false,"is_opinion":false,"focusai_summary":"South Korean integrated resort operators, Inspire Entertainment Resort and Paradise Co, have voiced significant concerns regarding proposed amendments to the Tourism Promotion Act. These reforms, including a potential increase in the tourism levy and new licensing requirements, are projected to escalate financial pressure and undermine future investment in the capital-intensive sector. Executives warn of soaring refinancing costs and adverse impacts on operational expenditure, employment, and non-gaming facility reinvestment.","focusai_entities":"Inspire Entertainment Resort, Paradise Co, Paradise Group, Paradise City, Kang Dae-suk, Lee Jong-myoung, The Korea Times","focusai_location":"South Korea, Yeongjong Island, Incheon","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (0.95), regulator (0.98), compliance_legal (0.9), operator_casino (1.0), investor_analyst (0.97), journalist_researcher (0.92)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"IR Investment Outlook?","query":"How might the proposed increase in the Tourism Promotion and Development Fund levy and the new five-year license renewal system impact the long-term capital expenditure and M&A strategies for South Korean integrated resort operators?"},{"label":"Refinancing Risk Analysis?","query":"What specific financial instruments and covenants are most vulnerable to increased refinancing costs for integrated resorts like Inspire Entertainment Resort, given the proposed regulatory instability and higher levies?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[16338,154],"tags":[29,23632,152],"class_list":["post-777046776","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-east-asia-news","category-legislation-news","tag-casino","tag-integrated-resorts","tag-south-korea"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777046776","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/226"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=777046776"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777046776\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":777046792,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777046776\/revisions\/777046792"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/777030734"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=777046776"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=777046776"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=777046776"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}