{"id":777000715,"date":"2022-12-05T13:06:34","date_gmt":"2022-12-05T16:06:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/?p=777000715"},"modified":"2026-04-23T02:21:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T05:21:09","slug":"vote-on-macau-junket-bill-to-take-place-on-december-15","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/vote-on-macau-junket-bill-to-take-place-on-december-15","title":{"rendered":"Vote on Macau junket bill to take place on December 15"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The bill proposes changes to the legal framework for junket operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Macau.- The Legislative Assembly is expected to vote on Macau’s new junket law<\/a> on December 15. The bill would allow junket operators to each work with only one casino operator<\/a>. Individuals will no longer be licensed as intermediaries; only companies incorporated in Macau. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

All junket applications will be decided by the Minister of Commerce and Finance rather than the gaming regulator, the DICJ. Junket operators and agents must open accounts with gaming franchises to deposit cash and chips related to gaming. The funds must be owned by an intermediary or agent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gaming concessionaires will be able to open personal accounts<\/strong> for players to deposit funds and chips, but all transactions must be documented and comply with anti-money laundering laws. Illegal deposit acceptance is punishable by two to five years in prison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another proposed licensing condition is that junkets must hold MOP10m (US$1.24m) in share capital in addition to a bank guarantee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The current 46 licenced junket operators are expected to retain their licences after Macau’s new gaming concession takes effect on January 1<\/a>, provided they sign an agreement with the franchisee. After 2024, the government will decide whether to change the total number of gaming junkets in Macau<\/strong> according to the development plan of the gaming industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

See also: <\/strong>Macau\u2019s six casino operators welcome licence tender outcome<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, the judge presiding over the trial of former Suncity executives <\/strong>has heard final pleas and set January 18, 2023, as the date for the verdict. Alvin Chau Cheok Wa<\/strong>, the former CEO of Suncity (now LET Group Holdings Ltd<\/a>), is indicted for allegedly leading a criminal group, money laundering, providing illegal gambling at licenced establishments and making illegal online and proxy bets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the last session, Chau said that Suncity was not a criminal syndicate or a triad and said his company helped improve the operational model of junket operators in Macau.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chau said: \u201cWhen we earned MOP100, we put MOP99 back into Macau society and economy\u2026 What kind of triad was [Suncity]?\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The bill proposes changes to the legal framework for junket operations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":176,"featured_media":11996,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"is_press_release":false,"is_interview":false,"is_opinion":false,"focusai_summary":"Macau's Legislative Assembly is poised to vote on a new junket law on December 15, introducing stringent regulations such as limiting junkets to one casino operator, requiring MOP10m in share capital, and centralizing licensing decisions with the Minister of Commerce and Finance. Concurrently, the verdict for former Suncity CEO Alvin Chau, facing charges including money laundering and illegal gambling, is scheduled for January 18, 2023, underscoring heightened regulatory scrutiny in the market.","focusai_entities":"Legislative Assembly, DICJ, Suncity, LET Group Holdings Ltd, Alvin Chau Cheok Wa","focusai_location":"Macau","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (1.0), regulator (1.0), compliance_legal (1.0), operator_casino (1.0), tech_data (0.7), payments_fraud_aml (1.0), investor_analyst (1.0), supplier_vendor (0.7), journalist_researcher (1.0)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"Junket Law Impact","query":"What are the projected GGR and NGR impacts for Macau's concessionaires under the new 'one junket, one casino' model, considering the MOP10m capital requirement and the shift in licensing authority?"},{"label":"AML Compliance Challenges","query":"How will the new requirements for documented player accounts and junket fund management necessitate changes in AML and KYC technology infrastructure and operational protocols for Macau's gaming operators?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[16338,154],"tags":[23911,23906],"class_list":["post-777000715","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-east-asia-news","category-legislation-news","tag-gambling-regulation","tag-macau-casinos"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777000715","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/176"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=777000715"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777000715\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":777000740,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777000715\/revisions\/777000740"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11996"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=777000715"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=777000715"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=777000715"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}