Casino suspicious transactions drop 6% in 2025

Macau’s casinos reported 6.1% fewer suspicious transactions in 2025 compared with 2024, signaling tighter compliance in the world’s largest gambling hub.

The Financial Intelligence Office (GIF) announced earlier this week that gaming operators submitted 3,603 suspicious transaction reports (STRs) across the MSAR’s six concessionaires in 2025, down from 3,837 STRs in 2024.

Gaming STRs have fluctuated since 2019. That pre-pandemic year saw 1,913 reports from gaming operators and a total of 2,941 STRs. Numbers spiked to 3,431 in 2023 before easing last year.

Overall, the office received 4,925 STRs from the Unitary Police Services in 2025, also down 6.1% from 5,245 in 2024. Financial institutions and insurers submitted 1,008 STRs, down from 1,097, while other institutions reported 314, slightly up from 311.

Last year, the office forwarded 118 STRs as tax collection documents to the Public Prosecutor’s Office. Officials attributed the 2025 decrease primarily to fewer STRs reported by the gaming sector.

According to GIF’s 2024 annual report, “a steady upward trend in money laundering cases investigated and prosecuted by judicial authorities in recent years also reflects the commitment and determination of the Macao SAR Government to curb financial crimes.”

Top STR types in 2024 were centered on casino activities: chips conversion with or without gambling topped the list at 1,596 cases, followed by irregular large cash withdrawals at 1,119. Other categories included links to other crimes (843), currency exchanges (821), and large cash deposits from unverified sources (796).

Chips conversion, marker redemptions, and third-party gambling hit 611. Total STR typologies reached 10,707 in 2024.