Although no formal plans have been announced on whether or how a digital currency would be implemented, some junkets – businesses that act as middlemen for Chinese high-rollers who make up half the city’s gambling revenue – are worried the imposition of a traceable, government-linked currency will be the death knell for an industry already hobbled by the virus and stricter rules around high-stakes gambling.
Macau has moved a step closer to the potential introduction of a digital currency as it seeks to better combat money laundering and tax evasion in the world’s biggest gambling hub.
The government plans to amend laws to regulate the issuance of a virtual legal tender, Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng told lawmakers Tuesday. The government will work with China’s central bank to “study the feasibility of issuing a digital currency,” he said.
