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VIP gambling in Macau drops 64% by 2022

Revenue from big bets in Macau was MOP10.1 billion (€1.1 billion) in 2022, down 64% from 2021, and 92.5% from 2019 (a pre-pandemic year), it was reported today.

In the last quarter of the year, operators collected 2.1 billion patacas (240 million euros) in the last quarter of the year in the so-called VIP game, against 1.1 billion patacas (126 million euros) in the previous three months, according to data released by the Directorate of Inspection and Coordination of Games (DICJ).

Casino operations have been badly affected by the pandemic with sharp reductions in revenue. The high roller numbers in 2022 are less than 7.5% of the same sector’s revenues in Macau in 2019, which reached 135.2 billion patacas (€15.1 billion), the time when VIP gambling lost its status as the most dominant segment in overall revenues.

Also read: Looking for new gaming revenue in the Macao SAR

This year ended with Macau casinos posting a 51.4% drop in cumulative gross revenue, from 42.1 billion patacas (€4.8 billion) versus 86.8 billion patacas (€10 billion) in 2021.

Since 2020, the six gaming operators in Macau, MGM, Galaxy, Venetian, Melco, Wynn and SJM, have accumulated unprecedented losses and the government has been forced to resort to the extraordinary reserve to respond to the crisis, not least because about 80% of government revenue comes from gaming taxes.

The gaming operators renewed, on December 16, the concession contract for the next ten years, taking effect on January 1 in Macau, the only place in China where casino gambling is legal.

The authorities demanded in the public tender to focus on non-gambling elements and foreign visitors, hoping to diversify the territory’s economy.

Also read: “Macau’s tourism industry is ready”

Gaming accounts for 55.5% of Macau’s gross domestic product (GDP), an industry where more than 80,000 people work, or 17.2% of the employed population.

Macau, which like China was following a zero covid policy, announced this month the cancellation of most prevention and containment measures after nearly three years of the strict restrictions.

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