“Not true, not true. Casino licence… That’s a lie,” he told reporters while holding out his arms in an X sign.

He was asked if it was true that Malaysia was considering a second casino licence for Johor’s Forest City development.

Bloomberg had reported earlier today that Anwar met Berjaya founder Vincent Tan and Genting Group’s Lim Kok Thay last week to discuss the matter.

Quoting sources familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported that a casino would revive the US$100 billion property project.

The Bloomberg report said that gambling is one of the most regulated sectors in Malaysia, with a casino licence having to be renewed every three months at the discretion of the finance minister.

Anwar is also the finance minister.

Genting has held Malaysia’s sole casino license since 1969 and operates the country’s only casino in Genting Highlands.

Genting also operates casinos in the US, the UK and Singapore.

In 2014, the New Straits Times reported that Tan wanted to revive plans to operate a casino at the Berjaya Hills Resort in Pahang.

The report said that while Tan had applied for a licence to operate a casino in Berjaya Hills since 2004, it was rejected amid protests from some quarters.