Lawrence Ho is the son of Macau gambling tycoon Stanley Ho. The young Ho had planned to invest more than USD5 billion in Japan after Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. received permission to build a casino in the country. The move was after Ho saw constraints in developing a multi-billion casino in Macau due to certain complex restrictions in the country.

Ho's investment in the world's third biggest economy was a part of his strategic move for overseas expansion and future growth of his gaming firm. However, limited land area and labor shortage in Macau had restricted the growth of the gaming industry in the country.

In an interview in Tokyo last September 28, Ho said, "We still have the most eggs in the Macau basket. Given the Macau government and the Chinese government want to control the growth rate."

Ho had also eyed in gaming project investments in the Philippines and Russia. He had also looked into the casino gaming industry in Japan. Restrictions imposed by the government of Macau had limited the number of gaming tables and hands out land permits at intervals to prevent the gaming industry from growing too fast considering the nation's size. Macau is only half the size of Manhattan with USD38 billion in casino revenue last year. The country's revenue was actually six times bigger than that of the Las Vegas Strip.