The Year Ahead

China’s Crackdown Leaves the World’s Biggest Gaming Hub on the Brink

Expiring licenses and pandemic restrictions add to the risks for casino operators in Macau.

Photo illustration: 731; Photos: Lisboa: Billy H.C. Kwok/Bloomberg; Dice: Getty Images; Chips: Getty Images

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By Shirley Zhao

January 11, 2022 at 9:00 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

This article is part of the January 17, 2022 issue of businessweek.

The clock is ticking for casinos in the world’s largest gaming market. The licenses of Macau’s six operators expire in June, two decades after the Chinese city opened its gaming industry to foreign investment. That’s creating the possibility that new players may enter the market in 2022 and other operators could lose their place at the table.

The deadline couldn’t come at a worse time for the city’s casino operators, still suffering from a dearth of customers because of China’s border shutdowns aimed at walling out the coronavirus. Macau’s gaming revenue in 2021 was $10.8 billion, down 70% from its pre-pandemic level, as several Covid-19 outbreaks led the Chinese government to temporarily suspend quarantine-free travel between the city and the mainland from late September to mid-October. Currently, residents in nearby Hong Kong need to quarantine for two weeks upon entering Macau, and the door remains shut for visitors from the rest of the world.