A Hong Kong-based company has expressed interest in investing US$500 million to construct a horse racetrack in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.
Nguyen Trung Khanh, chairman of ASA Businessman Knowledge School Co. Ltd., which represents the investing company, announced at a meeting with the Can Tho government on July 4 that the racetrack would be part of an entertainment and tourism complex spanning 150 hectares. The complex would include a hotel, park and golf course, reports The Saigon Times.
The track could potentially host up to 16 races daily, earning VND50 trillion (US$2.2 billion) yearly. It could also contribute VND10 trillion in taxes yearly while creating 20,000 new jobs in the Mekong Delta, according to VnExpress.
Vo Thanh Thong, Can Tho's chairman, spoke favorably about the project, saying that, if approved, local government departments would cooperate with investors, adding that the central government would also need to support the endeavor.
Sports betting was legalized in Vietnam on March 31 of this year, reports VietnamNet. Vietnamese citizens 21 and over can participate in sports betting with a maximum limit of VND1 million (US$44.51) per day. This new legislation has opened up the possibility of building racecourses in Vietnam to investors.
[Photo via Alphacoders]
