The Indonesian cigarette billionaire Putera Sampoerna has put Les Ambassadeurs, his high-rolling London casino, up for sale 18 months after buying it. A number of the world’s biggest gaming groups, including Harrah’s, are taking a keen interest, but it is thought that Las Vegas Sands is the frontrunner to buy it. However, the purchase price could be below the [[GBP]] 115m that Sampoerna paid. Les Ambassadeurs is one of London’s most exclusive casinos, attracting high rollers as well as a good smattering of hedge-fund managers, trustafarians and Premiership footballers.

TPG Newbridge, one of the world's biggest private equity funds, seems set to emerge as SkyCity Entertainment Group's mystery suitor. TPG Newbridge consists of Texas Pacific Group and its Asia-Pacific affiliate Newbridge Capital. TPG is already busy building a major position in the international casino sector. With partner Apollo Management, it is set to complete the USD 27.8 billion (NZD 37.4 billion), or USD 90 a share, all-cash buyout of Harrah's Entertainment by the end of the year.

Ten minutes by helicopter or one hour by hydrofoil from Hong Kong, the former Portuguese colony of Macau is crammed onto a couple of tiny islands and a peninsula jutting from the Chinese mainland. Only half the size of Sydney Harbour, it has just overtaken the Las Vegas Strip to become the gaming capital of the world. But the boom has only just begun. Cranes crowd the skyline as new casinos and hotels spring up on reclaimed land. And high-speed ferries stream across the Pearl River estuary from Hong Kong like trucks down a busy freeway.