Macao SAR chief executive pledges to promote healthy, orderly development of gaming industry

MACAO -- Macao's top official Sam Hou-fai on Monday pledged to promote the healthy and orderly development of the city's gaming industry in accordance with the law, amid the government's continuous efforts to further diversify the economy.

In his inaugural policy address as chief executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), Sam emphasized stringent compliance frameworks for gaming concessionaires, requiring operators to "strictly adhere to legal provisions and regulatory requirements."

This commitment forms part of a comprehensive plan to implement intelligent management systems and advance responsible gaming initiatives across the region, Sam noted.

While casino gambling is illegal on the Chinese mainland, it is a key industry for Macao, governed under the "one country, two systems" policy since the Chinese government resumed the exercise of sovereignty over it in 1999 following a long period of Portuguese colonial rule.

With the December 2025 deadline approaching for satellite casino transitions, Sam pledged to coordinate policy implementation and contingency planning.

These third-party operated venues, currently operating under primary concessionaires' licenses, must transition to a management fee-based partnership model — a regulatory reform initiated through a three-year adjustment period aimed at strengthening industry oversight.

Sam's policy blueprint urges gaming operators to strategically allocate resources to non-gaming sectors, particularly focusing on major development projects in Macao and initiatives enhancing the city's global competitiveness.

To ensure accountability, the SAR government will establish key performance indicators for non-gaming investments and implement regular compliance audits of concession contracts.

This monitoring mechanism builds upon Macao's 2002 market liberalization reforms that transformed the gaming sector from a monopoly structure into an open one. By 2006, Macao's gaming revenue had surpassed that of Las Vegas, solidifying its position as the world's largest gaming hub.

Recent economic diversification efforts have yielded measurable results, with gaming's contribution to GDP declining to 37.2 percent in 2023, a 14-percentage-point reduction from 2019 levels, according to official data.