“Casino gaming has wider social and economic implications. […] The profile and tourism revenues generated by casino gaming can bring major benefits to cities and entire regions.”(PWC Gaming Outlook 2011-2015, 2011)
Casino du Liban (CdL or the Casino hereafter) was founded on October 8, 1957 in accordance with the presidential mandate number 16694. It is a gambling entity that signed an agreement with the national government in 1995, enabling it to offer exclusive gambling (entertainment) services within the tourism industry until 2026. Intra Corp. s.a.l., affiliated with Banque du Liban (BDL), owns 52.32% of CdL, while the remaining 47.68% are distributed among investors and board members.
Unfortunately, from 2010 to-date, the Casino’s profitability declined for a number of external challenges and internal setbacks. On a macroeconomic front, the Lebanese economy witnessed a deterioration in the number of tourists since 2011, which slashed the number of gamblers and the Casino’s revenues too, as the study explores. On the financial front, the report digs further into CdL’s profitability, providing a detailed financial analysis of the entity’s performance from 2010 to 2016. It analyzes key internal impediments constraining the casino’s income from gambling and proposes ways to boost revenues also from alternate sources, such as: Food and Beverages (F&B aka restaurants), Theater, and Parking.
Room for improvement is vast to create an additional source of revenue for a country as highly leveraged as Lebanon. With support summoned from the government, the private sector, the entity’s corporate governance and its new management’s transparency, Casino du Liban possesses the potential to reclaim its past profitability, caliber, and to become a game changer on the Lebanese tourism sector, Beirut’s capital market, and the country’s budget-constrained economy.
For the full report, click here:
Monte Carlo of the Middle East Can Casino du Liban Reclaim its Throne?