{"id":777047683,"date":"2026-09-23T08:57:03","date_gmt":"2026-09-23T11:57:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/?p=777047683"},"modified":"2026-09-23T11:05:23","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T14:05:23","slug":"south-korea-expands-tourism-fund-loans-for-casino-facility-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/south-korea-expands-tourism-fund-loans-for-casino-facility-projects","title":{"rendered":"South Korea expands tourism fund loans for casino facility projects"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will allow casino operators to finance new construction, expansion, and renovation projects.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

South Korea.- The South Korean Tourism Promotion and Development Fund loan scheme<\/strong> has been expanded to allow casino operators to finance new construction, expansion and renovation projects for the first time since the fund was introduced in 1998<\/strong>. The measure comes as the government considers changes to casino regulation, including a possible increase in the tourism fund levy<\/a> and the introduction of five-year licence renewals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under revised guidelines from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, casino operators can now apply for separate facility loans in addition to financing for operating expenses. Loans of up to KRW15 billion (US$11.0m) will be available for new construction or expansion, while renovation projects can receive up to KRW8bn (US$5,8m). For large and medium-sized companies, the applicable limits are 75 per cent of those amounts. The loans carry an annual interest rate of 3.80 per cent for larger operators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The changes also provide a higher ceiling of KRW20bn (US$14,7m) for facility projects in designated tourism zones or tourism complexes, although the higher limit applies only to smaller companies. For the fourth quarter of 2026, total lending through the fund will be capped at KRW150bn (US$110m)<\/strong>, with 70 per cent of quarterly lending to be allocated to areas outside Seoul.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new financing rules apply to Kangwon Land, which operates the country\u2019s only casino open to local residents, as well as foreigner-only casino operators. Applicants for construction or expansion loans must have the required casino and building approvals, while operators must maintain their gaming licence after completing the project.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n\t\t\tSee also:<\/span><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tSee also:<\/span> Macau police arrest two over alleged proxy betting at Cotai casino<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will allow casino operators to finance new construction, expansion, and renovation projects.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":680,"featured_media":777046429,"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 Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has expanded its Tourism Promotion and Development Fund, allowing casino operators to secure loans for new construction, expansion, and renovation projects for the first time since 1998. This policy shift provides significant capital expenditure financing, with loans up to KRW15 billion for new builds and KRW8 billion for renovations, at an annual interest rate of 3.80 percent for larger operators. The measure applies to both Kangwon Land and foreigner-only casinos, signaling government support amidst considerations for broader regulatory changes like increased tourism levies and five-year licence renewals.","focusai_entities":"Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Kangwon Land","focusai_location":"South Korea, Seoul","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (0.95), regulator (0.9), compliance_legal (0.75), operator_casino (0.98), investor_analyst (0.95), supplier_vendor (0.7), journalist_researcher (0.9)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"Impact on Operator CapEx?","query":"How will the expanded Tourism Promotion and Development Fund influence the capital expenditure strategies and competitive landscape among South Korean casino operators, particularly Kangwon Land versus foreigner-only establishments?"},{"label":"Regulatory Framework Evolution?","query":"What are the specific implications of the proposed five-year licence renewals and potential increase in the tourism fund levy on the long-term regulatory and financial stability of South Korea's gaming sector?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,16338,24628,158],"tags":[12436,25370,24852,152],"class_list":["post-777047683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-casino-news","category-east-asia-news","category-highlight-of-the-week","category-slider-home","tag-casinos","tag-casinos-in-south-korea","tag-loan","tag-south-korea"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777047683","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\/680"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=777047683"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777047683\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":777047692,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777047683\/revisions\/777047692"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/777046429"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=777047683"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=777047683"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=777047683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}