Macau, China, April 13, 2026 (Lusa) - Suspicious transactions recorded in the casinos of Macau, the world’s gambling capital, rose by 11.8% in the first quarter of the year compared to the same period in 2025, according to official data.
The Financial Intelligence Office said that the six casino operators in the Chinese special administrative region submitted a total of 997 reports regarding transactions suspected of money laundering or terrorist financing.
The Financial Intelligence Office identified the increase in reports from the gambling sector as the primary driver behind a 10.2% rise in the overall number of suspicious activity reports, according to statistics released on Friday.
Between January and March, the office received 1,356 reports, with 73.5% originating from casino concessionaires, 18.1% from banks and insurers, and 8.4% from other institutions.
These sectors, which include pawnshops, jewellers, real estate agents, and auction houses, are legally required to report any transaction equal to or exceeding 500,000 patacas (approximately €46,500).
In 2025, the Financial Intelligence Office received 4,925 reports, representing a 6.1% decrease from the previous year, when the region had set a record for suspicious transactions.
The data follows news from late March, when Taiwanese prosecutors charged 10 individuals with using Macau casinos to launder 33 billion Taiwan dollars (€750 million) derived from illegal online gambling.
Lusa reached out to the Financial Intelligence Office to inquire if they were monitoring the case but has not received a response.
In March 2022, the US State Department designated Macau as a major global money laundering hub, highlighting high-stakes gambling promoters (known as ‘junkets’) and the illicit activities they often facilitate.
This designation persisted despite the arrest of Alvin Chau Cheok Wa, the head of Suncity, in November 2021, which was once the world’s largest VIP junket operator.
Earlier this month, organised crime experts told Lusa that Macau remained a fundamental node for money laundering by criminal organisations, despite the dismantling of the junket system.
"Although major Chinese criminal syndicates have shifted their operations across Southeast Asia in response to crackdowns, Macau remains an operational hub and meeting point for these deeply entrenched networks," said Martin Pubrick, a former member of the Hong Kong Royal Police and an expert on corruption and organised crime.
"Currency exchange bureaux, pawnshops and credit card transactions have absorbed this demand, which may mean that money laundering in Macau is now less centralised and less visible," said John Wojcik, senior researcher at Infoblox Threat Intelligence and former analyst at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
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