Crimes related to gaming or gambling in Macau increased by 12.2% year-on-year in the first half of the year to 1,278 cases, primarily due to illegal currency exchange, authorities announced today.
The Secretary for Security, Chan Tsz King, stated in a press conference that, among the cases, 259 involved illegal currency exchange for gaming purposes, representing a year-on-year increase of 7.9%. In addition, there were 87 cases of illegal money lending and six cases of disputes related to escrow deposits, corresponding to year-on-year decreases of 13.9% and 53.8%, respectively.
“Fraud cases occurring in casinos are generally linked to illegal currency exchange networks,” Chan told reporters.
In the first half of this year, authorities dismantled around 250 cases of illegal exchange, detained 322 individuals linked to exchange networks, and seized cash and chips totaling more than 16 million Hong Kong dollars (1.9 million euros), according to the official.
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Chan added that in April, the Macau Judiciary Police, in coordination with mainland Chinese police, launched an operation that dismantled a cross-border exchange network. Twenty-five people were arrested and about 5.7 million Hong Kong dollars (670,000 euros) in cash linked to the case was seized.
The following month, police carried out 59 operations targeting illegal exchange networks. Overall, in the first half of the year, 6,628 crimes were recorded in the territory, representing a 1.1% decrease compared to the same period in 2025.
In the first months of 2026, authorities recorded 1,006 cases of fraud, down 10.8% year-on-year, of which 283 cases were telecommunications and cyber fraud (down 38.5%). The data reveals that during the period under analysis, 129 violent crimes occurred, representing a 4% year-on-year increase. Regarding juvenile delinquency, 87 cases were recorded between January and June (up 7.4%).
Also during today’s press conference, the Secretary for Security announced that these crime reports to journalists will now be held semi-annually instead of quarterly, arguing that “crime figures for a three-month period do not show significant changes.”
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In April, the 2025 crime report was published on the website of the Office of the Secretary for Security without the usual press conference, and it was announced that quarterly briefings would be suspended. Two days later, Macau’s largest Chinese-language newspaper criticized authorities for “closing their doors to the public.”
