Asian Gambling Hub, Macau, Celebrates 10th Year Under Chinese Control

When looking into the influence that certain factors have on our lives or nations, a decade is a good tool for measurement. A lot can happen in ten years and this provides a great scale for comparison. This Saturday, the Special Administrative Region of Macau can mark its first decade exclusively under Chinese rule.

Prior to its being ruled by the Chinese, Macau was under the power of the Portuguese. Exactly a decade ago, the territory was handed back over to the Chinese and has been subject to Chinese laws ever since. Chinese gambling law is no exception.

As this region was already under a special administration, the Chinese decided to continue what was going on and to this day, this is the only region where gambling is exclusively legal in China. Despite the legality of gambling in Macau, there are still no online casinos in China which obtain a Chinese license. Any internet casinos accessible to the Chinese are based on foreign soil. However, these online casinos are plentiful, many of which operate in Chinese and accept the Chinese yuan.

Macau has been a glowing point of prosperity for the Chinese and, according to the Chinese Trade Ministry, trade between Macau and the Chinese interior has tripled over the last decade, and has yielded almost $3 billion. Macau’s 2010 budget includes expenditure of 44.646 billion patacas (US$5.58 billion).

Looking back over the progress that has been made in this area, the Chinese can only hope for another ten years as prosperous as the last. Given the success in the area, even under the pressure of apparent economic recession, it seems likely that the region will continue to bring in massive revenue.