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Feb25.indd 1 30/1/25 10:38 MACAU BUSINESS By Paolo A. Azevedo Gaming Briefs
JANUARY GAMING REVENUE DROPS 5.6 PCT YEAR-ON-YEAR TO MOP 18.25 BILLION Macau casinos raked in MOP 18.25 billion (USD 2.28 billion) in gross gaming revenue (GGR) in January, marking a 5.6 per cent year-on-year decrease, the city’s gaming watchdog indicated.
2024 MASS MARKET BACCARAT REVENUE SURPASSED PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS Gaming revenue generated by mass market baccarat reached MOP 137.9 billion (USD 17.2 billion) last year, surpassing the levels recorded in the pre-pandemic full year of 2019, according to data from the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ). In contrast, VIP baccarat gaming revenue totalled MOP 54.7 billion (USD 6.8 billion), accounting for 40 per cent of 2019 levels and making up 24 per cent of the total GGR figure for 2024 (MOP 226.8 billion/USD 28.3 billion)), down from 46 per cent in 2019. Primarily driven by junket operators at the time, VIP baccarat revenue peaked in 2013, constituting two-thirds of total GGR.
Jeju – the new Singapore
The performance signals the second consecutive monthly year-on-year decline, following December 2024’s 2 per cent drop.
The January 2025 figure was however slightly above the previous month’s MOP 18.20 billion tally. Macau’s full-year GGR in 2024 increased by 23.9 per cent to MOP 226.8 billion (USD 28.3 billion), accounting for 77.5 per cent of the level recorded in pre-Covid 2019.
For 2025, the SAR Government projects MOP 240 billion (USD 30 billion) in gaming revenue.
Baccarat remains by far the most popular game in Macau’s casinos, accounting for 85 per cent of the city’s overall gaming revenue last year across both mass market and VIP segments.
Another key source, slot machine-generated revenue, reached MOP 12.9 billion (USD 1.6 billion)in 2024, marking a 20 per cent increase from 2023. However, unlike mass market baccarat, slot machine GGR has yet to return to pre-pandemic levels.
2024 SUSPICIOUS TRANSACTION REPORTS FROM CASINOS HIT RECORD HIGH The number of suspicious transaction reports (STRs) filed by Macau’s gaming operators surged to a record 3,837 in 2024, marking an 11.8 percent increase year-on-year, according to data released by the Macau Financial Intelligence Office (GIF).
This figure represents the highest annual tally since the GIF’s establishment in 2006. The office is tasked with collecting, analysing, and forwarding reports of suspected money laundering and terrorist financing to law enforcement agencies.
Gaming operators accounted for 73.2 percent of the total 5,245 STRs submitted across Macau last year, a citywide increase of 13.7 percent from 2023. This overall total also set a new annual record for the territory. Out of the 5,245 STRs recorded in 2024, the GIF—integrated into the Macau Unitary Police Service last year— referred 142 cases to the Public Prosecutions Office for further investigation.
STRs are triggered by customer behaviours that may indicate money laundering activities, such as the conversion M 32 MARCH 2025
acau Business – From Lotte World, a major recreational complex [with the world’s largest indoor theme park, in Seoul] to an integrated resort with casino in Jeju. A different beast. A
natural evolution? Lawrence Teo – Business is the same. But building
a landmark. M. B. – The group [Lotte] has created other landmarks in different types of business. Why would this be different?
Jeju will be as big as Singapore in terms of Gross Gaming Revenue, predicts Lawrence Teo. The Chief Operations Officer and Vice President of Dream Tower, the tallest Integrated Resort under construction on the Korean destination island, explains to Macau Business why Lotte Tour decided to enter the casino business and create a landmark. All bets are on making the casino resort the crown of the tourism jewel the company has been dominating for four decades
to do the Dream Tower in Jeju. Lotte here is being just a family company; we’re a different company [Lotte Tour]. It’s not going to be [just] the tallest and the largest building in Jeju, that’s just the hardware. We say that a landmark should be the most visited destination, where tourists will go to eat, shop and maybe [visit] our observation deck. A must-visit point destination. Because of the hardware, and also the software.
M. B. – What are the main goals that you definitely
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