Forbes – Macau’s casino revenue isn’t seven times bigger than that of Las Vegas because more people go there. It’s because players bet more in Macau, and casinos have become increasingly more adept at encouraging that trend to build more mass market revenue that’s more than twice as profitable as VIP play. Mass market revenue is approaching 40% of Macau’s total gaming revenue. Walking the floors of Macau’s major casinos, minimum bets at baccarat table begin at $300 Hong Kong (US$39). There are lower minimums for roulette, the rare crap table, and sometimes for sic bo, a Chinese dice game…

QZ – Last week, the casinos of Macau, the world’s largest center for gambling in terms of revenues, got some bad news: smoking will be banned at all casino tables as of October, a move to protect workers’ health. That’s a problem for the island’s massive casino industry—which generated $45 billion last year, several times that of Las Vegas. Macau depends overwhelmingly on gamblers from the world’s largest nation of smokers—China. The mainland is home to about a third of the world’s smokers. About a quarter of the Chinese population smokes, compared to the global average of a little under…

Bloomberg – Wynn Macau Ltd. fell the most in more than two years in Hong Kong trading, leading declines among operators of China’s only legal casinos, amid concern that a crackdown on illegal money transfers will pare demand. The unit of Wynn Resorts Ltd. slumped 8.5 percent, its biggest decline since October 2011, at the close in Hong Kong trading. MGM China Holdings Ltd. (2282) dropped 8.2 percent, while Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. fell 7.6 percent. China is cracking down on the use of hand-held card-swipers within casino resorts amid concerns that tens of billions of yuan in illicit funds…

The Telegraph – Wynn Macau Ltd. reported first-quarter profit that beat analyst estimates as billionaire Steve Wynn’s casino drew more premium mass-market customers in the world’s largest gambling hub. The stock climbed. The company rose 4.1 percent to HK$31.80 (£2.436), the biggest gain since April 1, at the close in Hong Kong trading. The city’s benchmark Hang Seng Index rose 0.6 percent. Wynn Macau, which is building the $4 billion Wynn Palace resort to add to its sole casino in the city, has been reallocating gambling tables to serve the so-called premium mass gamblers who bet in cash. They provide…

Reuters – Macau, the world’s casino capital, raked in 31.3 billion patacas ($3.92 billion) in gambling revenue in April thanks to strong spending by Chinese visitors keen to place their bets in the country’s only legal casino hub. Gambling revenue growth in Macau, a special administrative region like neighbouring Hong Kong, was up 10.6 percent in April, beating analyst estimates of 6-8 percent growth. A Portuguese colony until 1999, Macau earns the equivalent of Las Vegas’ annual haul in less than two months. Annual revenues reached a record $45 billion in 2013, elevating the tiny territory high above rival gaming…

Game Spot – The eSports scene continues to grow. Major League Gaming announced plans this week to build the world’s first “MLG Arena,” a 15,000-seat stadium on Hengqin Island, which is off the coast of popular gambling hot-spot Macau. MLG announced the news Thursday, in partnership with Lai Fung Holdings Limited and eSun Holdings Limited. The new MLG Arena, located in what the company is calling the “V-Zone,” is planned as the centerpiece of an $18 billion “Creative Culture City” initiative for the Hengqin Island. In addition to operating as the site of the first-ever MLG Arena, the V-Zone is…