Casinos have to apply for their licence renewals for the first time in 20 years and regulators in China are expected to take advantage of the situation by compelling operators to accept the experimental use of the digital yuan, according to a government consultation paper.

The same paper includes other ideas such as having government representatives oversee daily operations.

Since Macau is not under the control of the Chinese capital, authorities consider it to be the perfect environment in which to conduct further tests of different technology. These tests would offer important support in China’s oversight of digital payments.

Even though there have been concerns operators might be fearful of such plans, the re-licensing process made companies like Wynn Macau and Galaxy Entertainment “eager to please.”

According to Bernstein analysts, “high rollers no longer dominate the standings, despite losing over $27,000 on average at each table visit”. Additionally, official data added that the mass market currently accounts for two-thirds of gaming revenue and almost 90% of earnings.

On top of the oversight of the payment, Chinese authorities are also looking into the introduction of digital payments in casinos as a means of fighting corruption.

Recently, the head of the Suncity junket, Alvin Chau, was taken into custody after allegedly being connected to an illegal cross-border gambling and money laundering syndicate.

Before the Covid pandemic, Suncity took in around $8bn in gaming revenue.