The Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA) of Singapore has renewed the casino licence of Marina Bay Sands (MBS) for three years starting April 26, 2025, the maximum duration allowed under the Casino Control Act, following a comprehensive assessment of its operations and compliance record.
In a statement on Friday, the GRA said the resort “has fulfilled the requirements set out in Section 45 of the Casino Control Act,” which include demonstrating suitability as a tourism asset and contributing to Singapore’s integrated resort sector.
MBS, operated by a unit of Las Vegas Sands Corp, has attracted more than 500 million visitors since its opening in 2010 and remains one of the city-state’s flagship developments in the tourism and entertainment space.
The licence renewal comes as Las Vegas Sands moves forward with a $1 billion expansion of the property in partnership with the Singapore Tourism Board. Construction is set to begin on July 8, 2025.
To support the expansion and refinance existing debt, MBS secured a $9 billion multi-tranche loan last month in what has become Singapore’s largest syndicated loan to date. Coordinated by DBS Group, Maybank, OCBC, and UOB, the deal involved 26 financial institutions in total.
In January, Las Vegas Sands reported a marginal year-on-year dip in financials for the fourth quarter of 2024. Net revenue declined 0.7% to $2.90 billion, while net income dropped to $392 million from $469 million a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA fell 7.5% to US$1.11 billion. Capital expenditures for the quarter totaled $547 million, including $194 million allocated to MBS.
Singapore maintains a casino duopoly between Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), which is operated by Genting Singapore. RWS was granted a two-year licence renewal in November 2024—short of the maximum—due to what the regulator described as “unsatisfactory” tourism performance during the evaluation period.
RWS is undergoing a S$6.8 billion ($5.15 billion) upgrade under its ‘RWS 2.0’ initiative, with several key projects scheduled for completion by 2030. These include The Laurus Hotel and the revamped Singapore Oceanarium, both expected to open in the third quarter of 2025, and a new luxury retail precinct dubbed “WEAVE,” slated for the second half of next year.
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