Wynn Resorts Eyes Singapore

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- It was only a matter of time before casino tycoon Steve Wynn set his sights on Singapore.

According to reports, the CEO of Wynn Resorts (WYNN) is looking to build a casino-hotel in the burgeoning gaming market.

"I'm dying to go to Singapore," Wynn told Singapore's Business Times in an interview. "That's my next goal in life -- to build a hotel in Singapore."

But Wynn will have to wait until 2017 to open a property in Singapore, as the government has granted exclusivity to Las Vegas Sands (LVS)and Genting.

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Singapore, which legalized gaming in 2005, is set to surpass Las Vegas in gaming revenue by the end of the year.

Las Vegas Sands has seen much success with its $5.5 billion Marina Bay Sands, which opened in April 2010. In the first quarter, the Singapore resort reported EBITDA of $284.5 million and revenue of $584.9 million.

But last week Sands was dealt a bad hand, when Singapore officials said it won't be allowed to sell its mall attached to its flagship property until March 2017. Las Vegas Sands had planned to sell the mall over the next two to three years for about $4 billion.

-Reported by Jeanine Poggi in New York.

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