Macau Gaming Regulator Head Resigns as Casinos Face Crisis

(Bloomberg) -- The head of Macau’s gaming regulator is stepping down from his position at a time when the world’s biggest gambling hub is facing its worst crisis in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

Paulo Chan, director of Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ), will relinquish his position, according to a spokeswoman from the Office of the Secretary for Economy and Finance. His successor will be announced in due course, the spokeswoman said, declining to give further details.

Chan was granted a 12-month extension after the new government led by Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng was voted in last year.

“The new Ho administration has demonstrated its decisiveness and effectiveness in managing the pandemic,” said Ben Lee, Macau-based managing partner at gaming consultancy IGamiX in a text message. “I think this latest change is Ho bringing his team on board.”

Macau News Agency first reported the news, which said Adriano Ho, an adviser to Macau’s Secretary for Security Wong Sio Chak, will replace Chan in June, citing unidentified people.

Casinos in Crisis

Chan’s sudden departure comes months before his tenure was scheduled to end on Dec. 1 and amid a body blow to Macau’s casinos as the pandemic makes gamblers wary of traveling to bustling places. Gross gaming revenue plummeted by a record 97% to 754 million patacas ($94 million) in April from a year earlier, marking the seventh straight monthly decline.

While casinos have reopened after a two-week virus-related shutdown in February -- the longest in its history -- empty baccarat and roulette tables point to the challenges of luring gamblers back.

Chan will return to work at the Office of the Prosecutor General, the spokeswoman said, where he was working previously before being appointed as the Macau gaming chief in December 2015.

During his tenure, he helped steady the business when the city was seeing a free-fall in casino revenues amid a corruption crackdown in China that scared off high-stake players.

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