Macau has reported 567 gaming-related crime cases in the first quarter of 2025, a 61.5 percent increase from the same period last year, according to data from the city’s security authorities during a media briefing. In Q1 2024, the Macau police logged 351 cases. The increase has been attributed to the recent criminalisation of unlicenced currency exchanges in the region.
Targeting illegal money exchange operations
The new legislation targets illegal money exchange operations, which is locally known as money exchangers. Last year in October 2024, the Anti-Illegal Gambling Crime Law took effect, criminalising “operating illegal currency exchange for gambling” and enhancing regulations for other illegal gambling crimes. Macau also amended its Law on Combating Gambling Crimes, introducing jail terms of up to five years for operating unlicenced currency exchanges.
The surge in money changers came at a time when there is an ongoing shift in the VIP business. The decline of the junket model has led to a fragmented, harder-to-monitor VIP scene, pushing high-stakes play into murky corners.
Other cases included fraud, theft
Of the total cases registered this quarter, 132 involved “operating illegal currency exchange for gambling.” This accounts for over 60 percent of the increase compared to the previous year. It is the primary driver behind the surge in gambling-related crimes. Next was fraud with 152 cases or 26.8 percent. Others were usury, theft, misappropriation and defiance of 바카라 exclusion orders. Additionally, despite the rise, authorities have reported substantial success in their enforcement efforts.
In a chilling case, a money changer was found stabbed to death after winning CNY2.3 million at Wynn Palace. Other crimes included loan sharking, theft, and violations of exclusion orders—gamblers who sneak back in despite bans. Meanwhile, Macau 바카라s filed 3,837 suspicious transaction reports in 2024, up 11.8 percent year-on-year, the highest number since the Financial Intelligence Office was set up in 2006.
Additionally, Security authorities in Macau said that the effectiveness of cross-border cooperation was best demonstrated in March when Macau and mainland Chinese authorities came together to jointly dismantle to transborder illegal currency exchange criminal organisations. The operation, jointly conducted by the authorities, led to the arrest of more than 60 gang members across both jurisdictions.
The crackdowns align with Beijing’s broader push to clamp down on illicit capital outflows. One of the key provisions of the stricter law includes extending the maximum detention period for offenders involved in illegal gambling. Additionally, law enforcement will be granted new powers to carry out nighttime searches of suspected residences. The bill also introduced an undercover system to facilitate the investigation of illicit gambling operations.
Recently, Macau’s Judiciary Police (PJ) launched an upgraded Anti-Fraud Centre in response to increasingly sophisticated scams, including the city’s first known case involving artificial intelligence (AI), according to local media reports. The move came amid growing concerns over AI-driven fraud targeting the gambling hub’s financial and digital sectors.
