MBS sues five gamblers for S$7.5 million
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MBS sues five gamblers for S$7.5 million
Yahoo! Newsroom – 1 hour 44 minutes agoCasino operator Marina Bay Sands (MBS) is suing five of its high-rollers for a total of S$7.5 million they are said to owe, reported The Straits Times (ST).
This, reported the broadsheet, is the largest group of gamblers being hauled to court since its opening last year, and is seen by analysts to show the casino operator’s seriousness on debt defaulters.
The five men, consisting two Malaysians, a Chinese national, an Indonesian and a Singapore-based Japanese, are accused of owing MBS between S$500,000 and S$2 million each.
ST reported that according to court papers filed against them, the five were premium players who were members of an exclusive club for valued patrons known as the Paiza.
The cheques they had initially issued and signed for MBS were not honoured by the banks they were linked to, the paper reported.
Malaysian Por Boon Chuan reportedly applied for a S$1 million credit line and was given S$500,000 in chips in December last year. During that time, he rolled over his credit line and earned S$18,012 in commission, which was then used to offset the amount he owed.
After allegedly failing to return the sum after a 90-day grace period, he is now being sued for S$518,436, an amount including 12 per cent interest, which kicked in after the grace period.
Investment company director Chock Kok Sui, also a Malaysian, was granted S$1 million in chips in June 2010 after applying for a S$5 million credit line. He was later issued another S$900,000, and after receiving S$44,605 in commission, MBS is now suing him for S$1.855 million, ST reported.
Macau-based Zhang Dechun received S$2 million in chips after applying for the same amount during his visit to MBS last November, reported the broadsheet. From his roll over, he earned S$56,111, so the casino operator is seeking S$1.943 million from him, the paper added, citing court documents.
Indonesian Husni Muchtar also allegedly owes MBS S$920,500, added the broadsheet.
The fifth high-roller, Takami Shinichi, a Japanese who is based in Singapore, is alleged to have started with a S$200,000 credit line in June 2010. This was later upped to S$1 million in February this year. Papers filed against him showed that MBS approved an increase of Shinichi’s credit line to $2 million in April, and now is claiming $1,999,324 from him, reported ST.
MBS has declined comment on any of the cases when contacted by Yahoo! Singapore, saying they are all undergoing investigation.
Shinichi is the only one of the five who are disputing the casino operator’s suit, however, with his lawyer claiming that Shinichi did not qualify as a premium player when he was issued credit last June.
He said that Shinichi lacked the minimum credit balance of S$100,000 in his deposit account when he first started playing, which meant that MBS was then considered as a moneylender, under Singapore’s Moneylenders Act, in releasing more credit to him later, ST reported.
He argued that since MBS is not a licensed moneylender, the credit owed to them then cannot be recovered.
Under Singapore’s Casino Control Act, casinos here are allowed to extend credit only to premium players, defined as those who have placed at least $100,000 with them, in the form of cash, cheques or chips.
The amount of credit extended to players is determined by casinos after consideration of the patron’s ability to repay the credit, as well as his or her financial standing. This can amount to as much as S$5 million, and players sign an agreement with the casino that details repayment time and maximum credit limits, among other conditions.
Repayment periods vary from a few months to a year, and casinos typically issue warnings to players who exceed their agreed-upon time, analysts told ST.
Players who default on their credit repayments are sued only as a last resort, and a casino has to report an impairment loss should they fail to pay off their debts on time.
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