Macau casino operator Sands China Ltd remains bullish on the long-term prospects of Macau, with the firm’s chief executive and president, Grant Chum Kwan Lock (pictured), describing the city’s tourism and diversification journey as “still unfolding”.
Speaking about Macau’s development over the past two decades, Mr Chum said the city’s integrated resort (IR) industry had created an “unmatched” tourism offering in Asia, while stressing that continued innovation and non-gaming expansion would be critical to sustaining growth over the next decade.
“We at Sands [China] are unrelenting optimists on Macau’s future, and we would do our utmost to advance Macau’s diversification and to enhance Macau’s reputation internationally as a unique and compelling tourism destination,” Mr Chum stated.
He made the remarks during a keynote address on the first day of Global Gaming Expo (G2E) Asia 2026, a casino trade show and conference taking place at The Venetian Macao property. G2E Asia 2026 – organised by RX (Reed Exhibitions), and presented by the American Gaming Association – will run until Thursday (May 14).
According to Mr Chum, Macau’s IR sector benefits from a combination of political stability, strong consumer demand and an “unparalleled” concentration of resort assets.
“What were the main ingredients for success? I would say there are three key factors: political stability, the demand potential, and the unmatched supply of resort product here,” he stated.
Mr Chum said the “one country, two systems” framework had created a stable investment environment that enabled the rapid development of Macau’s gaming and tourism industries after market liberalisation in the early 2000s.
He also highlighted the growth of the Chinese mainland’s economy as a major driver of Macau’s expansion over the past two decades. On the supply side, Mr Chum argued Macau possessed an “impregnable advantage” due to the concentration of large-scale casino resorts on Cotai.
“In Macau, just on Cotai, you have 10 or 11 world-class IRs. It is almost impossible to imagine that, over next two or three decades, there could be another city in the region that could rival this critical mass of premium IRs,” the Sands China CEO said.
The executive added that replacement costs for such developments had risen sharply since the initial construction boom. “We built this building [The Venetian Macao] at the time for US$2.4 billion. It would probably cost US$11 billion to US$12 billion to recreate it now,” he noted.
Non-gaming boost
Mr Chum said Macau’s diversification efforts increasingly depended not only on physical infrastructure but also on investment in tourism “software”, including branding, destination marketing, partnerships and talent development.
“The diversification of the industry through the non-gaming industry takes the combination of the great hardware, but also great software,” he mentioned.
He pointed to the growth of entertainment, luxury retail and the meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) tourism as examples of successful diversification initiatives over the past 20 years.
Regarding entertainment, Mr Chum said Macau had become an important stop for international performers and sporting events, citing the role of The Venetian Arena in hosting “hundreds of world-class events, concerts, variety shows, and sporting events”.
He also said Macau had emerged as a key destination for luxury brands in Asia as the sector increasingly integrated hospitality and lifestyle experiences. “Macau is the perfect match for luxury retail in the way the [IR] industry is developing,” he noted.
The executive also emphasised the importance of the MICE sector in driving higher-value tourism. “The power of that industry is evident because it drives international visitation, a longer duration of stay, and higher spend per visitor,” he stated.
Mr Chum said all six Macau casino concessionaires were now actively contributing to the city’s diversification strategy through events and non-gaming attractions.
“Collectively, if we integrate the hardware, the software and the different pillars of diversification between hospitality, entertainment, food and beverage, MICE, wellness, art and culture attractions, we can truly deliver the next stage of Macau’s diversification and its continued enhancement in terms of global reputation,” he stated.
