The number of suspicious transactions recorded in the casinos of Macau, the world’s gambling capital, rose by 8.7% in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2025, according to official data.
Macau’s Financial Intelligence Office (GIF) reported that the six casino operators in the Chinese territory submitted a total of 2,018 reports of transactions suspected of money laundering or terrorist financing.
According to statistics released on Tuesday, the GIF pointed to the increase in casino sector reports as the primary reason for a 9.5% increase in the total number of suspicious transactions across all industries. Between January and June, the office received 2,753 reports in total, with 73.3% coming from casino concessionaires, 19.1% from banks and insurance companies, and 7.6% from other institutions and entities.
Regulated sectors—including pawnshops, jewelry stores, real estate agencies, and auction houses—are legally required to report any transaction equal to or exceeding 500,000 patacas (approximately €54,000) to the authorities.
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In 2025, the GIF received 4,925 reports, a 6.1% drop from the previous year when the semi-autonomous Chinese region hit an all-time record for suspicious transaction filings.
The rising metrics follow high-profile legal cases. At the end of March, Taiwan’s Public Prosecutor’s Office indicted 10 individuals for using Macau casinos to launder 33 billion Taiwan dollars (€893 million) originating from illegal online gambling operations.
In March 2022, the US Department of State designated Macau as a major global money laundering hub, explicitly pointing to high-roller junket operators and the “illicit activities they often facilitate.” This designation stood despite the high-profile November 2021 arrest of Alvin Chau Cheok Wa, leader of Suncity, which was the world’s largest VIP betting junket at the time.
In early April, organized crime experts told Lusa that Macau remains a critical money laundering node for criminal networks, even after the dismantling of the traditional junket system.
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“Although large Chinese criminal syndicates have shifted operations across Southeast Asia in response to repressive measures, Macau continues to be an operational hub and meeting point for these deeply rooted networks,” said Martin Pubrick, a former member of the Royal Hong Kong Police and an expert on corruption and organized crime.
“Currency exchange businesses, pawnshops, and credit card movements have absorbed that demand, which may mean that money laundering in Macau is less centralized and less visible today,” noted John Wojcik, a senior researcher at Infoblox Threat Intelligence and former analyst for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
