Macau satellite venue Grand Dragon Casino in Taipa will “officially cease operations at 23:59 on September 22, 2025,” said its gaming licence provider Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd in a Friday statement.
A slot parlour operation of Melco Resorts under its Mocha chain of outlets in Macau – Mocha Kuong Fat, in downtown Macau – “will cease operations at 23:59 on September 24, 2025,” added the gaming group.
“The cessation date for the operation of Mocha Grand Dragon Hotel and Mocha Royal Hotel will be announced in due course,” added the firm, referring to two other Mocha venues, the latter on the site of Hotel Royal Macau, on the city’s peninsula.
The moves come “following a review of Melco Resorts (Macau) Ltd’s overall strategic development,” said Melco Resorts, referring to its local unit that holds the gaming licence in Macau. The plan to close these venues had been announced in June.
“This decision has been approved by the Macau SAR [Special Administrative Region] government,” added Friday’s statement.
Melco Resorts said all gaming tables currently operating at Grand Dragon Casino “will be reallocated” to the casino at its City of Dreams complex in Macau’s Cotai district, while the electronic gaming machines at the Mocha Clubs that are closing “will be reallocated” to the group’s casinos at Altira Macau in Taipa, and City of Dreams and Studio City, also in Cotai, as approved by the Macau casino regulator, the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, a body also know as DICJ.
In its own press release on Friday, DICJ said it would “oversee the closure procedures” for the Melco Resorts’ casino and slot parlour, “ensuring that they run smoothly and orderly, and that all legal procedures are duly followed”.
That included “the proper handling of cash and gaming chips held in the cashier, unused cash coupons, and the exchange of gaming chips, among other matters, related to the satellite casino,” stated DICJ.
“Furthermore, the proper handling of cash, jackpots accumulated from gaming machines, and unexchanged cash tickets from gaming machines, among other matters, related to the slot machine parlour, will also be ensured,” it added.
In its announcement, Melco Resorts stated that “all customers’ rights are safeguarded after the cessation of these operations”. Customers holding gaming chips from Grand Dragon Casino after its closure “may exchange them at the Melco Club/Signature Club” at the casino of Altira Macau, “from September 23, 2025”.
The casino firm further mentioned that “customers of the Mocha Clubs that will close will be able to continue to use their gaming slips,” ticket-in-ticket-out (TITO) vouchers, at Mocha Inner Harbor, Mocha Golden Dragon and Mocha Sintra Hotel, “which will continue in operation”.
The company also said that Melco Resorts Macau’s “local employees” currently at Grand Dragon Casino and the affected Mocha Clubs “will be reassigned to continue performing their duties at other casinos and gaming areas operated by Melco Resorts Macau … according to Melco Resorts Macau’s operational needs, ensuring the continuity of their employment and a smooth transition”.
As per the DICJ update, the closure of Grand Dragon Casino affects 176 directly employed by the Melco group, while impacting 36 other staff at Mocha Kuong Fat.
“The DICJ will continue to maintain close communication with the Labour Affairs Bureau to ensure strict compliance with Melco’s commitments, particularly the previously presented proposal regarding the relocation of these employees, as well as effective guarantees regarding their remuneration, benefits, and working conditions,” stated the regulator.
