Premium mass gaming has emerged as the key driver of Macao’s casino revenue growth in 2025, even as casinos appeared to be lowering their mass-market baccarat bet minimums. That’s according to a new Citigroup survey reported in casino industry media.
According to the past 12 months-worth of Citigroup’s table surveys, the number of premium mass players gambling in the SAR is up 6 percent year-on-year, with average wager per player rising by the same margin to HK$24,018. The investment bank ascribed this to an improvement in both the “quantity and quality” of players.
Citi analysts George Choi and Timothy Chau noted that total wager by premium mass players reached HK$191.4 million for the year, a 12 percent increase compared with 2024, despite what they described as a challenging macroeconomic backdrop marked by global trade tensions.
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The bank’s December survey, showed total observed premium mass wagers of HK$12.6 million, up 18 percent year-on-year, with the number of such players rising 5 percent to 534. That indicated a 13 percent increase in average wager per player compared with December last year.
“Because Macao offers affluent mainland Chinese consumers a ‘total experience’ (concerts, hotel suites, and new side bets) that they are willing to spend on, we believe Macao (gross gaming revenue) GGR growth will continue to be sustained,” analysts Choi and Chau said.
Citi also observed increased competition in the mass-market segment, particularly on the Macao peninsula, as casinos sought to capture business previously handled by satellite venues, GGR Asia reported. The last satellite casino standing, the Landmark, will cease operations on 30 December.
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Citi said that since October, several casinos – including StarWorld, City of Dreams, Wynn Macau and Casino Lisboa – had opened new gaming areas with “notably lower minimum bets,” in some cases as low as HK$300.
“These areas were quite crowded when we visited,” the analysts said, adding that satellite casino players appeared to be testing new venues. They noted that further competition could emerge if Sands Macao joins the trend.
The average mass baccarat minimum across Macao in December was HK$2,058, down 3 percent month-on-month, although still 4 percent higher than a year earlier. “We think the sequential decline coincides with the six casino operators fighting for GGR market share that is now up for grabs from the recent closure of satellite casinos,” the analysts added.
