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Historic 2021 Moment as Bermuda Announces First-Ever Casino
By Shane Addinall Jan 18, 2021 IndustryThe newly elected Progressive Labour Party is striving for a stronger more economically viable Bermuda in 2021 – which includes advancements in FinTech and the launch of the country’s first casino.With the recent landslide General Election victory by Bermuda’s Progressive Labour Party came the long-awaited announcement of the territory’s first casino.
Premier David Burt was interviewed about the party’s first 100 days, during this session he commented on the regions ongoing challenges surrounding the impact of the pandemic, which included their commitment to launching the country's first casino in 2021.
Driven to Succeed in 2021
The charismatic Premier spoke in earnest of his admiration for how the leadership and the country have met the economic challenges of 2020 and the positive attitude that has been adopted by setting 2021 as a year of growth and stability.
Given the country’s renewed vision for technology and gaming Burt said:
“I am expecting certainly that we’ll have a casino, at least one casino, operating in Bermuda this year and we’ll continue to work on that.”
To ensure the long term success of both the Bermudan economy and its inaugural casino property the Premier did state that the launch of the historic casino will coincide with the approval of the country’s digital banking proposal.
He went to say:
“We have a challenge when it comes to our banking structures, and a challenge when it comes to new, different and innovative industries having access to a financial system so they can transact their level of business.” … “We believe it makes good financial sense for there to be a publicly affiliated financial institution that can provide broader-based financial ownership to the country.”
Burt was firm in his belief that the gambling and fintech sectors share many similarities in terms of infrastructure, technology, and the need for comprehensive regulation. Having a stable financial infrastructure will ensure that Bermuda can both protect their citizens from problem gambling and ensure that the administration can collect their due.
Why the Five Year Delay?
Gambling has outlawed in Bermuda in 2004 and despite being a British territory, it did not adopt the United Kingdom’s gambling regulations nor come under the purview of the UK Gambling Commission. Gambling was managed by a national government agency which was plagued by allegations of mismanagement and outright corruption.
Jamahl Simmons, Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, put out a statement at the time saying:
“This Government is committed to having a clean, successful gaming industry that enhances our tourism product and creates new opportunities for Bermudians.”
The institution of Bermuda’s Casino Gaming Act was the fulfilment of this commitment with the act allowing the Casino Gaming Commission to act in the best interest of the country, free from any entanglement with the previous regime’s misdeeds.
With a progressive leadership, a newly empowered Casino Gaming Commission, and the promise of renewed investment in digital currency and digital banking there has never been a better season for the launch of Bermuda’s historic first casino.
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