Inspire Resort and Paradise Co Executives Warn of Arbitrary Levy Hike and Crushing Burden on South Korea Casino Operations
TL;DR — Executives from Inspire Resort and Paradise Co warned that South Korea’s proposed increase in the casino tourism levy from 12% to 15% of GGR is arbitrary and imposes a crushing burden. They cited KRW2 trillion in investments, KRW600 billion accumulated deficits, ongoing borrowing to meet payments, and risks to KRW1 trillion refinancing plus local jobs. The comments were made at a Korea Times roundtable.
SCCG Take — The operators’ concerns highlight how regulatory changes perceived as unstable can raise capital costs and deter reinvestment in non-gaming assets required for integrated resort viability.
South Korea’s government has proposed raising the maximum casino contribution to the Tourism Promotion and Development Fund to 15 percent of gross gaming revenue from the current 12 percent. Two executives from foreigner-only casino operators described the plan as arbitrary and warned it would impose a crushing burden, speaking at a Korea Times round-table discussion on Wednesday, according to reporting by GGRAsia.
Inspire Executive Flags Investment, Losses and Refinancing Risk
Kang Dae-suk, assistant vice president of legal and government affairs at Inspire Entertainment Resort, a complex at Incheon controlled by Bain Capital, pointed to the scale of prior commitments. “We invested nearly KRW2 trillion won [US$1.45 billion] to build a world-class resort on Yeongjong Island based on government assurances of steady support.”
Kang added that “Casino gaming occupies less than 4 percent of facility space.” Still, “our accumulated deficit reached nearly KRW600 billion by last year.” Despite these heavy losses, the resort has been “borrowing money to pay tens of billions of won in tourism funds every year.”
Kang asserted that the higher levy could pose a serious risk to the resort’s upcoming refinancing of more than KRW1 trillion next year. “If financial institutions view this industry as unstable due to arbitrary regulatory hikes, our refinancing costs will soar.” That will force us to cut operating costs, which directly threatens local employment and cultural investments like our arena. The arena is a 15,000-seat non-gaming facility onsite for concerts and other large-scale events.
Paradise Co Director Stresses Competitiveness and External Volatility
Lee Jong-myoung, executive director of the communications department at Paradise Co Ltd, which runs four venues each with a foreigner-only casino, stated that “Integrated resorts cannot maintain competitiveness without constantly reinvesting in non-gaming facilities such as conventions, luxury hotels and entertainment.”
Lee noted that “Foreign-only casinos in Korea operate under volatile external variables like diplomatic tensions and pandemic threats.” He added that “Imposing a rigid revenue-based levy increase creates a crushing burden that discourages future investment.”
Reporting: GGRAsia
Generated by SCCG’s automated editorial system from published source reporting. SCCG Management holds editorial responsibility.
Arbitrary tax hikes spook lenders and kill reinvestment — exactly how governments turn integrated resorts into stranded assets.
We work across regulated markets where capital allocation hinges on policy stability. When a government moves the goalposts mid-game — especially on leveraged resort operators carrying deficits and trillion-won refinancings — it sends a chill through every investor and lender watching Asia. This is a textbook case study in regulatory risk pricing.
- Proposed levy hike from 12% to 15% of GGR hits operators already KRW600B in deficit and borrowing to pay current levies
- Inspire faces KRW1T+ refinancing next year; unstable policy raises capital costs and threatens local jobs, non-gaming assets
- Gaming occupies <4% of facility space but carries the tax load — integrated resort model breaks under arbitrary increases
SCCG angle: SCCG has guided clients through Asia regulatory shifts for decades and maintains direct relationships with resort operators, government affairs specialists, and institutional capital across the region. When tax structures destabilize, we help clients model exposure, adjust capital deployment, and identify markets where policy frameworks reward long-term investment instead of punishing it.
Gaming, betting and prediction markets — the desk’s read, every weekday.
Subscribe →