A new partnership has been formed that could see the introduction of the next generation of casinos. DeClub, a casino management company out of Macau, has connected with Malta-based investment firm Wide Rich Global Company to bring blockchain and gambling closer together.
According to a company press release, DeClub indicates that Wide Rich wants to buy the gaming company to build the “world’s first blockchain-based casino gaming hub with fully integrated online and land-based casinos.” To fund the purchase, Wide Rich is offering an initial coin offering (ICO), which it hopes will allow it to attract as much as $1 billion.
In a white paper about the project, Wide Rich states, “The tokenization of chips, casinos and their surrounding entertainment service providers will be able to build a pan-gambling business ecosystem together, so that people with varying business needs – from tourism, to business meetings, to shopping – can all gain easy and cost -effective access to customized and prestigious services on their mobile devices.”
During the ICO, Wide Rich will issue the “DEC” token, giving purchasers rights to host and invest in cash lending pools. At the same time, DeClub will offer its own token, the “NNC,” which are stablecoins that can be redeemed in order to cover goods or services at casinos.
Macau has a fairly strict anti-ICO policy. The Monetary Authority of Macau prohibits banks and other financial institutions from providing services to any entity in the crypto industry; however, private-sector ICOs are not included in the ban.
This isn’t the first time that someone tried to combine crypto with casinos. Dragon Corp introduced an ICO in 2017 that sought to raise $500 million for its Dragon Coin, part of which was to be used to build a floating casino. Those plans, however, never made it off the dock after the main contractor backed out.
There’s no reason to expect this latest project to advance, either. Earlier this year, Macau’s gaming regulator said that cryptocurrency would not be accepted as a means of currency in Macau. If Wide Rich wants to see their project become successful, they’ll need to find a different location, or risk the fury of more than a few investors when the project stalls.
