The Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Leong Vai Tac, issued a reminder that Macao’s gaming concessionaires and sub-concessionaires – as well as the city’s licensed gaming promoters – had to comply with laws in Macao in order to carry out their local businesses.

Mr Leong made his remarks on Wednesday (17 July), while on a visit to Jiangsu Province with a youth delegation. He was asked to comment on reports by  mainland news outlets, which alleged a Macao gaming promoter company had been involved in operating an online gaming platform for play outside Macao.

The Secretary further stated that other jurisdictions had their own particular laws and Macao’s laws only applied for business pursued in Macao. He noted companies were advised to carry out activities in line with regulations in the relevant jurisdictions in which they had business.

The Macao SAR Government has strictly overseen activities in the local gaming industry, including imposing certain requirements on those involved in the sector. These efforts were believed to have had a positive impact on the city’s development, Mr Leong said.

Mr Leong pointed out that the Government had responded in a timely manner in order to follow up on cases where companies were thought to have acted against Macao laws. He added the Macao SAR Government remained closely in touch with the gaming sector, in order to have a sound grasp of the latest progressions in business within the sector.

Following the publication of the news reports, the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau had held a meeting last week with the gaming concessionaires and sub-concessionaires, and gaming promoter associations.

The Government had done a lot of work to promote responsible gaming and to remind the public not to get involved in illegal gaming activities, stated Mr Leong. That effort included sending SMS text messages to visitors not to take part in online gaming. Additionally, messages urging visitors to engage in legal gaming in a responsible manner were displayed on monitors at cross-boundary checkpoints and on various news platforms, stated Mr Leong.