Cyprus Set To Approve Casino Bill on March 10th

A gambling bill that will pave the way for an integrated casino resort to be built in the Republic of Cyprus will be put to a House of Representatives vote on March 10th. The bill’s final draft had previously been reviewed during a joint session involving the House Finance committee and the Commerce committee on March 1st. Both committees subsequently expressed their satisfaction with the piece of legislation, with Commerce committee chairman Zacharias Zachariou stating:
“The regulations are sufficiently stringent, aim to protect the public and gamblers in the casino, and are on a par with those in force at European and international casinos across the planet.”
Historically, the Republic of Cyprus had traditionally shunned casino gambling, unlike the Turkish-occupied north of the island which is under internationally-imposed embargoes, and whose numerous casinos are viewed as a valuable source of income. Following an economic downturn, however, the Republic of Cyprus is set to finalize its new casino gambling legislation, with the government having now laid out a strict set of rules for the soon-to-be-named lone winner of the license.
Amongst the strict rule laid out in the bill is the need for all people employed at the casino resort to provide their fingerprints, and documentary evidence of their “sound” finances, as well as reveal any criminal convictions they may have had over the past 10 years. Another regulation imposed on the casino resort is that it advertises and promotes all its services and facilities, and not just those related to gambling.
Currently, there appears to be three operators vying to be awarded the Republic of Cyprus’ lone casino license, namely the USA’ Hard Rock International, Philippines’ Bloomberry Resorts, and Cambodia’s NagaCorp, with all three companies interested in building a casino resort in the island’s capital city, Nicosia. Cyprus receives around 2 million tourists each year, and is uniquely located in the Mediterranean between the continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa.