Macau Concludes Talks on Draft Law Covering Digital Currency

The “Legal Regime for the Establishment and Issuance of Currency” has been discussed by the second standing committee of Macau’s Legislative Assembly (AL), and the present draft includes digital currency.

The measure, according to Chan Chak Mo, the chairman of the second standing committee, applies to all forms of legal tender in Macau, including virtual money. The proposed legislation creates “legal space” for the eventual legalization of digital currencies. In view of the government’s general planning objectives and social development requirements, he continued, “the application will be further investigated.”

Last year, the Macau government made plans public for the adoption of digital currency as legal cash. However, there are currently no further specifics, and it is still unclear whether such digital currency will be accepted in Macau’s casinos.

The gaming business in Macau will undergo huge changes if digital currency can be used in casinos.

In April 2020, China already introduced its digital RMB. According to Bernstein Research from the previous year, China’s digital RMB might become a crucial component of a cashless gambling infrastructure in Macau, and the procedure could perhaps be more straightforward than in jurisdictions that aren’t using a central bank-backed digital currency.

One benefit of digital RMB-powered cashless gaming, according to Bernstein analysts, would be the significant improvement it may make to Macau casinos’ ability to combat money laundering. As they wouldn’t need to deal with currency swaps or carry around large sums of cash, customers would also enjoy a more frictionless experience.

Since all money used in Macau casinos may be tracked, the adoption of digital RMB could eventually result in a relaxation of China’s capital regulations. The actions of players could likewise be monitored.

The government has already stated that it opposes the usage of cryptocurrencies, despite not taking any steps to outright ban them, thus it is unlikely that the anticipated digital currencies will also contain them. at the past, Macau had a reputation for being a center for cryptocurrency initial coin offerings (ICOs) as well as being associated with fraud schemes like the DragonCoin fiasco, a platform that promised the usage of cryptocurrencies at Macau’s casinos despite never getting any official approval to do so.