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Cyprus Gambles On Casino Odds

europe_bet203-b_bStruggling with a burgeoning economic crisis and with a bailout that is so flawed that Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades said it won’t work without more money from international lenders, the government is banking on another plan to get money – casinos and gamblers.
According to Bloomberg, Cyprus has already prepared a draft law on casino licensing and operation. Within the next few weeks the island is as well awaiting the findings of a study, over the potential size of the market as Commerce, Tourism and Industry Minister George Lakkotrypis stressed this week.
He said that he believes Cyprus will overcome the crisis – although Anastasiades wasn’t so sure – and said that nonetheless the island remains a top tourist draw.
Given that tourism is making up about 19 percent of Gross Domestic Product, casinos may provide a boost, particularly from Russian visitors, officials said.
As Paul Herzfeld, a former deputy chief executive officer of Casinos Austria who founded gaming industry consultants Herzfeld Consulting in Vienna, highlighted “Cyprus would fit the bill of a place that’s easy to reach for a few days or weeks in the sun where you can find a variety of entertainment venues.”
The piece noted that Russia banned most gambling in 2009, outlawing casinos and slot-machine halls, and established four far-flung zones across the country for development as gambling areas. As a result, now most wealthy Russians travel if they want to gamble legally.

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