28-8-2024 (SINGAPORE)Â Marina Bay Sands (MBS) has issued persona non grata notices to two executives from its competitor, Resorts World Sentosa (RWS). The move, described by industry experts as unprecedented, bars the executives from entering any part of the MBS integrated resort premises.
Andrew MacDonald, RWS’s chief casino officer, and Louise Ng, assistant vice-president of business development, both former MBS employees, received the notices on July 31. The ban prohibits them from entering or remaining in any area of MBS, including the hotel, mall, convention centre, and casino.
MacDonald, a veteran with over 40 years in the casino industry, shared the notice on his LinkedIn account on August 18. The 64-year-old executive, who joined RWS in September 2022 after leaving MBS in July 2021, vehemently denies allegations of attempting to poach MBS customers and staff during several visits to the property in July.
“My visits were purely social in nature,” MacDonald stated in response to queries from The Straits Times. He explained that his presence at MBS was due to a visit from a close friend, former Crown Melbourne executive Mike Sugrue. MacDonald acknowledged speaking with two high-rollers during his visits but insisted he did not initiate these conversations.
When approached for comment, an MBS spokesperson said, “Restricting anyone from our premises is not a decision that we take lightly. We have robust protocols to assess the merits of such action. The factors behind a decision of this nature are confidential.”
The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Singapore stated that the imposition of persona non grata notices is a business decision made by casino operators and referred inquiries to MBS.
Veteran lawyer Salem Ibrahim, representing MacDonald, highlighted the unprecedented nature of the ban. “It is unprecedented because Marina Bay Sands integrated resort is a quasi-public place. The integrated resort has inter-connectivity to public infrastructure like the MRT and Gardens by the Bay. It was intended to be the nation’s civic core,” Ibrahim said.
The ban comes amid fierce competition between MBS and RWS in Singapore’s lucrative VIP gaming sector. According to UOB Kay Hian Securities investment analyst Jack Goh, RWS operator Genting Singapore’s market share of the VIP gaming sector is about 48 to 49 percent, compared with MBS’s 51 to 52 percent.
