The last few weeks have witnessed the Macau Court of Second Instance uphold an 18-year imprisonment sentence on former head and initiator of gaming enterprise, Suncity Group, Alvin Chau. Tabled against Chau were allegations of fraudulent actions, ties to unlawful groups, illegalized sports betting and, the monetization of criminals’ assets. Chau, alongside 20 other individuals, were all handed discernable punishments for participating in similar unlawful undertakings.
It was also recently reported that the Court of Second Appeal in Macau dismissed an appeal lodged by gaming enterprises who demanded compensation from the same Suncity Group as well as from Chau. Having the opportunity to make another attempt at attaining economic restitution, reports from native media outlets signify that these gaming operators have abandoned such plans.
All together, a sum of $265 million in compensatory payments was requested from Suncity Group by five different operators. The largest restitution claim was put forward by Wynn Resorts who reportedly requested a total of $96 million in damages. The following gaming enterprise, Galaxy, reportedly requested $70 million in damages, while MGM China had a compensation claim of approximately $42.5 million. SJM Resorts and the Venetian Macau also filed their claims of $22.2 million and nearly $37 million respectively.
However, indications are that the quintet of operators may cease their pursuit of damages from the erstwhile junket conglomerate. Citing information from local news outlets, it was disclosed that joint resolutions have been made by gaming companies not to proceed with claims of compensation against Chau or the Suncity Group in the wake of the Court of Second Appeal’s verdict.
The Fall in Junket Operations Following Intense Crackdown
The Court of Second Instance in Macau recently corroborated that Chau had amassed an estimated $2.25 billion in illicit earnings from covert betting activities. They also reported that an additional $921 million had been leveraged from proxy betting operations.
In November 2021, Chau was apprehended, marking the advent of the downfall in casino junket operators. Macau saw this as a golden opportunity to clamp down on this profit-churning sector, which for the past decade was tied to money laundering and other criminal activities and consequently raked in billions in revenues. This led to a majority of leading operators, once allies of junkets, severing all connections.
As of earlier this year, MGM China disclosed that junkets had a minuscule effect on its revenue. Upon revelation, it was stated that junkets added only 3% to the total gaming revenue. This ferocious campaign against junket operators triggered a massive plunge in their quantity. A study conducted and presented in January disclosed that as of the year’s beginning, the junket count had dwindled to a mere 36. Reflecting on the situation a decade ago, this is a striking plunge when compared to the era when over 230 active junket operators were operational.
