From January through March, law enforcement in Macau reported a 61.5% rise in gaming-related crimes, with 567 incident reports filed, a significant increase from the first quarter of 2024. This surge in criminal activities has been attributed to the recent criminalization of unlicensed currency exchanges in the casino city.
Previously, in June, Beijing initiated a crackdown on illicit money changers, who assist gamblers in circumventing government restrictions on capital flight. In response, the Macau Legislative Assembly passed legislation in October that officially criminalized these activities.
The Ministry of Public Security has noted that these exchanges contribute to money laundering and are associated with various criminal activities such as fights, fraud, thefts, illegal immigration, and even severe crimes like kidnapping and murder.
The revised Law on Combating Gambling Crimes now prescribes prison sentences of up to five years for those involved in illegal currency exchange, with the added consequence of a possible 10-year ban from entering city casinos.
Furthermore, the law has intensified penalties for illegal gambling activities, including side bets and parallel betting, which are now punishable by up to eight years in prison. Additionally, the legislation enhances police authority to search and enter suspected illegal gambling locations.
### Crime up despite fewer casinos
Interestingly, the rise in criminal incidents comes amid a decrease in the total number of casinos in Macau, which dropped from 40 in 2019 to just 30 today, as reported by Macau Business.
Moreover, gaming operators filed a record 3,837 suspicious transaction reports last year, marking an 11.8% increase from the previous year and representing the highest volume since 2006, when Macau established its Financial Intelligence Office.
This increase in crackdowns on money changers has occurred alongside shifts in the VIP business sphere, including the significant decline of the junket sector. The State Administration of Foreign Exchange in China limits foreign withdrawals from Chinese banks to CNY100,000 ($14,000) per year—insufficient for high rollers accustomed to betting $25,000 per hand.
Of the 567 cases recorded in the first quarter, 132 involved money changers, accounting for more than 60% of the increase. Other prevalent crimes included fraud, which comprised 152 cases or 26.8%, and additional offenses like usury, theft, misappropriation, and defiance of casino exclusion orders.
“Casinos and gambling are typically seen as hotbeds for various forms of deviant behavior and criminal offenses,” said Quan Fang, a researcher at the School of Law, Macau University of Science and Technology.
Sonny Shiu-Hing Lo, an author who has analyzed crime in Macau, concurred that “casinos are linked to activities such as money laundering, loan sharking, and prostitution.”
The recent legislative change to criminalize money exchanges came shortly after a tragic incident where a money changer, after winning approximately CNY2.3 million at a local casino, was murdered and found stabbed in his room at the Wynn Palace on Cotai.
This spike in gaming-related crime in early 2025 highlights the ongoing challenges and complex dynamics introduced by the new legislation targeting illegal money exchange operations in Macau.