Macau’s criminalization of unlicensed exchange inside casinos for gambling purposes could have the effect of driving such transactions away from casinos to other parts of the city, several experts surveyed by GGRAsia say.
The article, part of a draft bill under review by the City Council, states that unlicensed exchange is a crime if it occurs in a game or non-game area of a casino location.
“Criminalization may slow the flow of ‘money changers’ in and around casinos, but their presence in the market is unlikely to end,” said Antonio Robo-Villela, a former gaming adviser to the Macau government.
“They are likely to spread to other places outside casinos or their surroundings,” he noted.
Mr Vilela added, “This business can be reduced to ‘cash courier’ activities. Changing money is done outside Macau, where funds are available.” 메이저놀이터
Macau lawyer Bruno Asenc ̧ told GGRAsia, “Macao’s currency exchange activities will move away from casinos, but they will continue as long as there is a steady flow of tourists into the area.
“Capital flow restrictions imposed by mainland China create a need for mechanisms to circumvent these restrictions. And these mechanisms will continue until these restrictions are lifted.”
Mr. Vilela said Macau was a criminalization measure aimed at wreaking havoc on these unauthorized activities. Cash “is a huge amount at risk and probably none of the players want it to go away completely.”
He observed, referring to the decline in Macau junkets, officially known as game promoters, which traditionally helped raise Macau gambling credits for VIP players on the mainland and beyond. “The vacuum caused by the ‘disappearance’ of casino game promoters entails significant money. junket activity was valued at around $17 billion in 2019 and has moved to around $600 billion.”
The first figure was based on data from Macau regulators for $135.23 billion (roughly $16.9 billion) of VIP gross gaming revenue generated in 2019.
Even in the post-junket era, “high rollers probably don’t use ‘money changers’ in and out of casinos,” Mr Vilela said, adding that “they’re likely to get everything sorted out in advance and arrive in Macau.”