Abu Dhabi CNN -
With its flashy luxury resorts and a world-renowned horse racing industry, the United Arab Emirates soon might have a brand-new card to play in drawing in visitors - gambling.
The UAE introduced a new regulative body to supervise business gaming on Monday, made up of casino and gambling specialists from the United States. Gambling is currently prohibited in the UAE, where some laws are based on the Quran, which forbids the practice.
The brand-new federal body, called the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA), would produce a "regulatory framework for a nationwide lottery game and industrial video gaming," according to Emirati state media WAM.
" [GCGRA will] help with unlocking the financial capacity of commercial video gaming responsibly," WAM stated.
Industry veterans Kevin Mullally and Jim Murren have been worked with for key functions as CEO and chair respectively in the GCGRA, according to WAM.
The 2 executives have a combined 32 years of experience in the betting industry according to LinkedIn - Murren is the former CEO of MGM Resorts International (MGM), while Mullally held various positions at Gaming Laboratories International.
"I look forward to developing a robust regulative body and framework for the UAE's lottery and gaming industry," Mullally said on his new appointment, according to WAM.
In 2015, gambling establishment operator Wynn Resorts tattooed a deal to develop a high-end resort in Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates with a "gaming location." A statement by Wynn Resorts (WYNN) did not elaborate on whether gambling would be included, however Craig Billings, CEO of Wynn Hotels, told shareholders in an incomes call on August 9 that the resort expects to have a license for video gaming operations in Ras Al Khaimah "imminently."
"There should be no issue that there is a wider legalization procedure in order for video gaming to take place because residential or commercial property," Billings informed investors.
Global gambling establishment business Caesars Entertainment (CZR) has actually run a non-gambling hotel in Dubai given that 2018.
Legalized betting in the UAE would likely be of interest to cruise liners such as MSC and Royal Caribbean Cruise, which regular the UAE's ports with gambling establishments on board. But betting is forbidden in UAE waters, so gambling establishments are forbidden from running while docked, according to Costa Cruises and Oceania's FAQ pages.
Dubai prides itself as the "cruise hub of the area," harboring 1,750 cruise liner each year. The UAE's capital Abu Dhabi saw a record number of 700,000 cruise tourists between May 2022 and 2023.
Overall tourism presently represents 9% of the UAE's GDP. If 1.6% of the UAE's GDP was based upon video gaming - as it remains in Singapore - it would generate $6.6 billion dollars of revenue annually, Bloomberg analysts reported on Monday.