There’s plenty of gambling news coming out of Russia at the moment, and some of the most exciting concerns Vladivostok. The far eastern Russian city is set to launch a brand new casino and hotel complex by the second quarter this year.

Summit Ascent Holdings Ltd – who are run by Ho Yau Lung, a casino investor based out of Macao – is the company behind the casino. According to a note released by the Daiwa Securities Group, Vladivostok’s new casino should have all its construction completed by the second quarter. After that, a month-long governmental inspection and commission period is set to begin. It will then be a further fortnight before the casino opens for the very first time, and that event is likely to be reserved for VIP customers only. Regular gamblers would be invited to play at the casino, shortly afterwards.

Located in the Primorsky Integrated Entertainment Zone (IEZ) in Vladivostok – one of four gambling zones legalized by Russia – the casino was originally scheduled to open within the first quarter of last year.  For reasons not announced, its launch was delayed a year.  Tigre de Cristal (as it will be known), will be situated about a 2.5 hour flight from Chinese, Korean and Japanese gamblers – who make up the largest group of players in the region. Summit Ascent Holdings Ltd (located in Hong Kong), are also in talks with various Chinese airlines to try and boost the number of flights to Vladivostok, in a bid to lure more people into the casino.

The Tigre de Cristal won’t be the only new casino opening in Vladivostok, following additional news this week that Cambodian casino operator NagaCorp Ltd are also interested in opening up a casino in the city. Early planning on the site, hints at a 2018 launch.