Digital RMB for Macau bets could be years away: scholar

Jul 24, 2023 Newsdesk Latest News, Macau, Top of the deck  

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It could be “five years” or more before a “trend is more clear” regarding general use of a digital version of China’s currency, renminbi (RMB), suggests a Macau academic.

Ricardo Siu Chi Sen, associate professor in business economics at the University of Macau, was responding to questions from GGRAsia on the sidelines of the recent Global Gaming Expo (G2E) Asia conference in Macau.

Asked whether the Macau casino industry might move to acceptance of digital renminbi for gambling wagers, Mr Siu stated: “I don’t think this would be in a short-term period. There must be a transition.”

He added that presently, a digital version of China’s currency “only accounts for 0.13 percent” of general transactions.

“Maybe after five years, 10 years, some trend could become more clear” regarding the general use of digital renminbi, he stated.

Casino bets in Macau are usually denominated in Hong Kong dollars, which is an internationally-convertible currency, unlike the Macau pataca.

Though Mr Siu said it might be possible in future to see “multicurrency” operations for gaming. That “could be resolved easily with technology,” he suggested.

He also observed that Hong Kong was now part of China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System, known as CIPS.

“That international payment system is now parallel to SWIFT,” he added, referring to a global bank-transaction clearance system.

Macau’s Legislative Assembly passed in June Law 10/23, designating digital currency as a recognised form of Macau-issued currency in the city.

That was “the first stage for future settlement and arrangement” in the city for Macau-issued digital currency, said Mr Siu, though regulation specifically on a form of Macau digital currency is not yet in place.

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