Macau gaming shifts beyond VIP rooms as mass market takes over
The conversion of former VIP gaming rooms at Grand Lisboa into guest rooms and supporting facilities is more than a refurbishment project. It reflects a broader shift in Macau’s gaming industry. Operators are moving away from the junket-driven model that once dominated the market. Instead, they are focusing on direct customer acquisition and the mass market.
The boom years when junkets drove Macau’s growth
In 2014, Macau’s junket sector was still operating at full speed, with 235 licensed gaming promoters, commonly known as junkets. These operators recruited high-net-worth players from mainland China. They arranged travel, extended gaming credit and earned commissions based on rolling chip turnover. They effectively managed the entire acquisition chain for VIP customers and accounted for around 60 per cent of gaming revenue. For concessionaires, junkets provided an efficient channel for customer acquisition with minimal marketing costs and played a significant part in driving the rapid expansion of Macau’s gaming industry.
At its peak in 2013, VIP baccarat accounted for 66 per cent of Macau’s total gross gaming revenue (GGR). The VIP room model became the defining feature of Macau’s casino industry, but growing regulatory and compliance concerns eventually resulted in a major overhaul of the system.
Regulatory reforms reshape the market
Macau’s junket industry began to change in 2022 with the introduction of Law No. 7/2022, which barred gaming promoters from operating dedicated gaming areas or running them under contractual arrangements and introduced a three-year transition period for satellite casinos. Another major change came in August 2024. The Legal Framework for Casino Gaming Credit (Law No. 7/2024) entered into force that month. The new law placed gaming credit under the control of licensed concessionaires, removing gaming promoters’ legal authority to extend credit to players. As a result, gaming promoters lost one of their core business functions.
The impact has been significant. The number of licensed gaming promoters has fallen from a record 235 at the height of the sector to just 29, well below the statutory limit of 50 operators for 2026, with only 58 per cent of the available licences currently in use.
VIP share halves as the mass market becomes dominant
According to the latest second quarter 2026 data released by the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ), VIP baccarat GGR fell 2.6 per cent year on year and 18.8 per cent quarter on quarter to MOP15.8 billion (approximately $1.97 billion), reducing its share of total GGR to 26 per cent. This compares with 46.2 per cent in the pre-pandemic year of 2019.
Meanwhile, mass market baccarat generated MOP35.17 billion (approximately $4.36 billion) in the second quarter, accounting for 57.6 per cent of total GGR. For 2024 as a whole, mass market baccarat revenue reached MOP137.9 billion (approximately $17 billion), surpassing pre-COVID levels, while VIP baccarat accounted for 24 per cent of total GGR.
Mary Mendoza, Managing Director of Platinum Strategic Consulting Group, told SiGMA:
“By May 2024, mass market GGR had reached approximately 113 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, highlighting the effectiveness of brand-led acquisition over junket-led methods.”
Costs have shifted rather than disappeared
The decline of VIP rooms has not eliminated operating costs for casino operators. Instead, responsibilities previously handled by junkets have increasingly moved in-house. Concessionaires must now build and manage their own Customer relationship management (CRM) systems, loyalty programmes, digital marketing channels and data-segmented offers.
In the fourth quarter, operators’ marketing expenditure rose 21 per cent year on year, equivalent to 19.2 per cent of GGR.
Speaking to SiGMA, Mendoza said:
“The core operational challenge is margin quality versus volume. VIP junket play was high risk but extremely efficient in yield per player; replacing that with mass and premium mass requires far more bodies through the door, supported by flawless hotel, F&B, transport and floor operations.”
Morgan Stanley analysts have also noted that Macau operators remain under margin pressure, with revenue continuing to rise while incremental profit margins narrow.
Repurposing VIP rooms for a new strategy
The conversion of former VIP gaming rooms at Grand Lisboa into guest rooms and dining facilities reflects the market’s changing priorities. Spaces originally designed for privacy and exclusivity are being adapted to better serve the growing mass-market customer base.
Major concessionaires are pursuing parallel strategies. MGM China plans to open an art museum and a traditional Chinese medicine wellness centre at its integrated resort in Cotai, while Sands China continues expanding its non-gaming attractions to appeal to premium mass customers.
Mendoza also told SiGMA:
“The success of non-gaming initiatives for Macau’s integrated resorts extends beyond merely increasing room availability; it involves crafting a culturally cohesive destination.”
She said successful non-gaming diversification should be rooted in Macau’s distinctive blend of Chinese and Portuguese culture and its modern tourism offering. Operators should use data to segment family travellers, affluent couples and business visitors, while developing tailored experiences around events such as Lunar New Year.
She added:
“Although mass market GGR has now surpassed pre-COVID figures, long-term resilience will stem from a diversified spending approach per visitor encompassing accommodation, dining, shows, and events rather than relying solely on gaming tables.”
High-value players are being redistributed
The closure of VIP rooms has not caused high-value players to disappear. Instead, some have migrated to other jurisdictions while others have shifted to premium mass programmes operated directly by concessionaires.
Mendoza said:
“Macau continues to be the largest land-based gaming market, with its 2024 GGR almost double that of Nevada and over four times that of the Philippines.”
She added that tighter junket regulation and cross-border capital controls have encouraged some high-value players to seek alternatives in the Philippines and other Southeast Asian markets through more flexible hosting models.
However, she stressed that no jurisdiction can fully replicate Macau’s combination of market scale, regulatory control, and proximity to mainland China.
Some capital previously channelled through Macau’s VIP rooms has already moved to casinos in less-regulated Southeast Asian jurisdictions, while a number of Macau junket operators have relocated their businesses elsewhere in the region.
Former junket players are increasingly participating in premium mass programmes, referral schemes and customised hosting arrangements rather than directly replacing the traditional junket system.
Competition in the mass market era
The direction of Macau’s gaming industry is now firmly established, but competition is intensifying. Forecasts from JPMorgan and other institutions projecting 7 per cent to 8 per cent growth in mass-market and slot-machine GGR during 2026 suggest that the mass market has become the industry’s primary growth engine.
Grand Lisboa’s decision to repurpose its former VIP rooms is one example of the wider transformation under way across Macau’s gaming industry. With junkets no longer at the centre of the market, operators are now competing to attract mass and premium-mass customers, increase non-gaming spending and build sustainable loyalty programmes based on direct customer relationships.
This article was first published on the Chinese SiGMA News page on 3 August 2026.
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