Macau junket operations fall
Licensed junket operators in Macau reveal a decline in their operations.
Macau.- Licensed junkets companies in Macau revealed a 13.5 per cent decline in their total operations during casino activities in 2017. In the last 12 months the controversial gaming sector has shrunk from 126 to 109, as revealed by official sources this week. The list of current junkets in Macau was published yesterday by the Gaming and Inspection and Coordination Bureau.
The latest report also reveals that the licensed market in the Chinese gaming hub is experiencing the fifth consecutive year of decline related to junket operations. Since 2015 the government of Macau has introduced several regulations to control and restrict the junket market, leading to a financial crisis for casino industry.
Paulo Martis Chan, director of the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) revealed on the side-lines of a conference in Macau that the regulation of gaming promoters will be soon tightened. The new measure will come after multiple calls for better regulations, the last one made by the president of the Association of Gaming & Entertainment Promoters of Macau, Kwok Chi Chung, who demanded a higher minimum deposit to obtain the junket promoter status. Chan revealed that the regulations will enter the legislation process in 2018. The government is considering increasing capital deposit for licensed casino junkets.
