This topic falls under a sensitive category and is presented descriptively and neutrally.
Genting Group is a Malaysian conglomerate led by Genting Berhad (listed on Bursa Malaysia in 1971) and its listed arms Genting Malaysia, Genting Plantations and Genting Singapore. Its flagship, Resorts World Genting, holds Malaysia's only land-based casino licence under the Betting Act 1953 and Common Gaming Houses Act 1953. That licence is lawful for non-Muslims; under Islamic (Syariah) law, Muslims may not gamble at all, regardless of venue — a dual legal treatment that reflects Malaysia's parallel secular and Syariah systems.
- Genting was founded in 1965 by Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong; Genting Berhad was incorporated in 1968 and listed in 1971, and the group is now led by Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay.
- The group has three listed principal subsidiaries — Genting Malaysia, Genting Plantations and Genting Singapore — plus unlisted Genting Energy and Resorts World Las Vegas.
- Resorts World Genting is Malaysia's only licensed land-based casino; gambling there is lawful for non-Muslims, while Muslims are prohibited from gambling under Islamic law.
- In a 2025 voluntary general offer priced at RM2.35 per share, Genting Berhad moved to lift its holding in Genting Malaysia from under 50% above the control threshold.
Who this applies to: Readers, investors and researchers trying to understand Genting's corporate structure and how Malaysia's casino licensing sits alongside the prohibition on gambling for Muslims.
On this page
A cool mountain-top resort an hour from Kuala Lumpur is the only place in Malaysia where a casino can legally deal a hand of cards. That single, unusual licence — lawful for non-Muslims, yet running alongside an Islamic-law prohibition on gambling for Muslims — sits at the heart of Genting, one of Malaysia’s largest home-grown conglomerates.
What is Genting, and how is the group organised?
Genting began in 1965, when Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong started clearing highland jungle to build a hilltop resort. The holding company, Genting Berhad, was incorporated in 1968 and listed on the Malaysian stock exchange in 1971. Today the group is led by Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay and reaches well beyond gambling — into plantations, power, property and biotechnology.
The structure is a parent company sitting over three separately listed subsidiaries, plus large unlisted operating arms.
| Entity | Listing | Core business |
|---|---|---|
| Genting Berhad | Bursa Malaysia (1971) | Parent holding company |
| Genting Malaysia | Bursa Malaysia | Leisure and hospitality, incl. Resorts World Genting |
| Genting Plantations | Bursa Malaysia | Oil palm plantations and downstream |
| Genting Singapore | Singapore Exchange | Resorts World Sentosa |
| Genting Energy | Unlisted | Power generation, oil and gas |
| Resorts World Las Vegas | Unlisted | Integrated resort in the United States |
Genting Plantations is the group’s agribusiness arm. It commenced operations in 1980 and now holds about 243,000 hectares of landbank across Malaysia and Indonesia — some 178,900 hectares of it in West, Central and South Kalimantan — feeding fourteen oil mills with a combined capacity of 765 tonnes per hour.
Why is Resorts World Genting the only casino in Malaysia?
Malaysia’s gaming statutes — chiefly the Betting Act 1953 and the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953 — ban gambling by default and make it lawful only where the government grants a licence. Licensed gaming is administered through the Ministry of Finance’s Betting Control Unit (Unit Kawalan Perjudian). Under that framework, exactly one land-based casino licence exists, and Resorts World Genting has held it since 1969, renewed continuously ever since.
The result is a legal monopoly by design. Non-Muslims and foreign tourists can lawfully play the tables and slot machines; every other land-based casino in the country is illegal.
How does the law treat Muslims differently from non-Muslims?
This is where Genting’s licence meets Malaysia’s dual legal system. Malaysia runs secular federal law alongside state and Federal Territory Syariah (Islamic) law that applies only to Muslims.
- For non-Muslims and tourists: the secular casino licence applies, and gambling at the venue is legal.
- For Muslims: gambling is prohibited under Islamic law regardless of where it takes place. Muslims caught gambling can be charged in the Syariah courts, which can impose fines and imprisonment.
So a single venue sits under two legal regimes at once: lawful commercial gaming for non-Muslims, and a religious prohibition that binds Muslims wherever they are. The arrangement is periodically contested: in 2024 the Islamic party PAS publicly called for the casino to be closed, arguing that gambling is forbidden in Islam.
Who controls Genting, and what changed recently?
The Lim family retains control of the group through its holding vehicle, and the parent has been tightening its grip on the listed arms. In a 2025 voluntary general offer priced at RM2.35 per share, Genting Berhad — which had held under 50% of Genting Malaysia — moved to lift its stake above the 50% control threshold, while signalling that its stakes in Genting Singapore and the US operations remain core strategic assets.
What’s next
Genting’s future turns on two open questions. Commercially, the group is balancing heavy investment in overseas integrated resorts (Las Vegas, New York, Singapore) against its Malaysian base. Politically, the casino licence remains a recurring subject of public debate — including periodic calls for its closure from the Islamic party PAS — so any reader tracking the group should watch both Bursa Malaysia filings for shareholding changes and the national debate over the licence itself. For exact current shareholding percentages, always check each listed company’s latest Bursa Malaysia and Singapore Exchange disclosures rather than relying on older figures.
Is Resorts World Genting the only casino in Malaysia?
Yes. It is the only licensed land-based casino in the country, operating since 1969 under a continuously renewed licence granted through Malaysia's gaming statutes. All other land-based casino gambling in Malaysia is illegal.
Can Muslims gamble at Resorts World Genting?
No. Under Islamic (Syariah) law, gambling is prohibited for Muslims regardless of venue. The secular casino licence applies to non-Muslims and tourists; Muslims remain subject to Syariah criminal law enforced by the states and Federal Territories.
What businesses does Genting operate beyond casinos?
Genting spans leisure and hospitality, oil palm plantations, power generation, oil and gas, property development, and life sciences. Genting Plantations runs about 243,000 hectares of landbank across Malaysia and Indonesia.
The following are deliberately unstated or described only qualitatively until confirmed by a subject-matter expert:
- Minimum entry age for the casino gaming floor (commonly reported as 21) — no opened primary source confirms it; the official Resorts World Genting casino pages were under maintenance when checked.
- Whether Resorts World Genting operationally denies entry to Muslims at the door, as distinct from the Syariah-law prohibition on Muslims gambling — not established by any cited source (Fortune explicitly does not state Muslims are barred from the floor).
- Exact pre- and post-offer shareholding percentages held by Genting Berhad in Genting Malaysia — The Edge confirms the RM2.35/share price and an under-50% starting stake but not the precise figures.
- Syariah penalties (fine amount and imprisonment term) for Muslims caught gambling — described only qualitatively here; the exact statutory figures were not sourced.
Sources
- Corporate Profile — Genting Berhad
- Corporate Profile — Genting Plantations Berhad
- Special Report: Genting details VGO rationale, plans for Las Vegas and Singapore operations — The Edge Malaysia
- Malaysia's only casino is in the political crosshairs as an Islamic party calls for its closure — Fortune
- Gambling in Malaysia: an overview — BJPsych International (Cambridge University Press)
Change history
| Version | Date | Change | By |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01.00 | 28 Jul 2026 | Approved and published. | — |