Macao generated a gross gaming revenue (GGR) of 57.65 billion patacas (US$7.21 billion) during the first three months of 2025, up by 0.86 percent in comparison to the 57.32 billion patacas (US$7.17 billion) recorded during the same period last year.
According to data from the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, 34.32 billion patacas (US$4.29 billion) of Macao’s GGR during the first quarter came from mass-market baccarat, which accounted for around 59.53 percent of total GGR.
Overall, the mass baccarat revenue during the first three months of 2025 represents a slight decline of 0.76 percent when compared to the 34.58 billion patacas (US$4.32 billion) reported during the same period in 2024.
When measured against the 29.87 billion patacas from the first quarter of pre-pandemic 2019, the current mass baccarat data marks an increase of almost 15 percent.
VIP baccarat was the second highest earning game during the first quarter of 2025, generating 14.45 billion patacas (US$1.8 billion) in GGR or around 25 percent of total GGR.
[See more: CLSA cuts growth projections for Macao’s gambling sector]
In comparison to the corresponding data from 2024, the current VIP baccarat figures also remained flat, increasing by only 0.54 percent over last year’s 14.37 billion patacas (US$1.79 billion). However, the data represents a major 61.14 percent drop in revenue against the 37.2 billion patacas (US$4.65 billion) recorded for VIP baccarat from January to March of 2019.
During the peak years of the early 2010s, revenue from VIP baccarat soared as high as 65 billion patacas (US$8.13 billion), recorded during the first quarter of 2014.
The downturn has been the result of a combination of factors, including the government’s crackdown on junket operators, whose numbers have been greatly diminished from 235 in 2014 to the current 24.
At the height of their power, the junkets accounted for as much as 60 percent of Macao’s GGR. However, various scandals involving money laundering and illegal casino operations resulted in the SAR government enforcing much stricter regulations.
As for Macao’s cumulative GGR in 2025, the government initially forecasted 240 billion patacas (US$30 billion), although the chief executive, Sam Hou Fai, has cast doubt over this number, noting during last week’s Q&A session at the Legislative Assembly that the first quarter GGR fell short of expectations.
