Billionaire Okada still wants Wynn, Universal

Japanese tycoon Kazuo Okada says he’ll take back the companies he founded, including Wynn Resorts and Universal Entertainment, the pachinko company that owns the Philippine casino hotel with Okada’s name on it.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes, editor at large for Inside Asian Gaming and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Okada claims elaborate frame up behind ouster

Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada claims Universal Entertainment subordinates created shady deals then blamed him to remove Okada from the gaming machine company he founded and the Okada Manila casino resort he created. Those allegations are part of a three hour-plus interview with Okada to be featured in the upcoming October issue of Inside Asian Gaming. Earlier, Okada expressed confidence he will get his empire back.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes, editor at large for Inside Asian Gaming and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Korea casino resort opens amid Chinese boycott

North Korea’s aggressive missile testing and nuclear ambitions casts a shadow over the opening of US$1.1 billion Paradise City outside Seoul. South Korea’s deployment of the US THAAD missile defense system in response has led to a boycott by Chinese tour groups, the resort’s target market.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Razon’s new Manila casino rooted in past regime

As the Philippines prepares to inaugurate a new president, billionaire Enrique Razon Jr’s new Metro Manila casino aimed at local players, is based on approvals granted two regimes ago.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes, editor at large for Inside Asian Gaming and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Bank heist bares Philippine money law flaws

Unauthorized transfers from Bank of Bangladesh sent US$81 million in illegal funds to Philippine banks and casinos, attracted by lax anti-money laundering laws.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes, editor at large for Inside Asian Gaming and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

No winners in war of Wynns

Dueling lawsuits targeting Steve Wynn and Wynn Resorts from his ex-wife Elaine Wynn and ousted vice chairman Kazuo Okada toss dirt on all.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes, editor at large for Inside Asian Gaming and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Macau goes French, 2016 hot for Manila, India

Sands China’s Parisian Macao being a big hit tops predictions for Asian gaming in 2016. A move up for Manila, Indians as a target market, Asian operators moving into Europe and Disney Shanghai as a travel disruptor are other stories to watch as this year unfolds.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Philippine hit, Macau miss in 2015 predictions

Last January, my prediction of a Macau recovery in 2015 was well off the mark, but I made better calls on the Philippines, Australia and Japan.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Japan Billionaire Okada Crafts Philippine Casino Comeback

Pachinko king Kazuo Okada’s $2 billion Philippine casino dream looked like a nightmare. But the Japanese billionaire’s Manila Bay Resorts is now on track to open next year as the largest property in the Entertainment City casino district.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Casino billionaires risk all in brawl

When elephants fight, the grass gets trampled, according to an Asian proverb. Most animals know how far to take a confrontation without lasting consequences, but occasionally, one or both elephants gets gored.

For more than a year, Wynn Resorts chairman and CEO Steve Wynn and Kazuo Okada, his one-time largest shareholder and key financier, have dueled publicly. Last week, Wynn shareholders voted to remove Okada from the company board of directors, a day after Okada, the chairman of Japan’s largest pachinko machine maker, resigned amid leveling a blistering attack on Wynn.

Behind the boardroom drama, billionaire casino developers Wynn and Okada have traded allegations of numerous shady dealings in Macau and Manila. Bribery accusations, in dollar amounts ranging from the hundreds to the hundreds of millions, figure prominently in their charges. As I wrote in Asia Times, inviting regulators to scrutinize the casino business is a risky bet. That’s especially true in this confrontation, where neither elephant seems inclined to back off.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.