Emperor Palace Casino to cease operation

Emperor Palace Casino, a satellite venue at the Grand Emperor Hotel in downtown Macau, will cease operations at 11:59 pm on 30 October, its operator SJM Resorts said, after consultation with the government¹. The Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) said the closure follows the three-year transition period for satellite casinos under Law No. 7/2022, which expires on 31 December 2025².

SJM said all gaming tables and slot machines at Emperor Palace will be redeployed to its other properties¹. The DICJ said it will send staff to monitor the shutdown on site and to handle cash and chips in the cage, along with any unredeemed cash vouchers, chip exchanges, accumulated jackpot pools on gaming machines and unredeemed machine vouchers². SJM said customer entitlements, including unredeemed chips, deposits or rebates, remain valid and can be processed at other SJM casinos from 31 October¹.

The DICJ said Emperor Palace has 71 employees and that it will work with the Labour Affairs Bureau to ensure SJM honors commitments to redeploy them under a previously submitted plan, protecting pay, benefits and working conditions and offering transfer opportunities². SJM said locally hired staff directly employed by the company will be reassigned to other casinos in the group, while local workers not on its payroll will get priority to apply for group vacancies¹.

A second satellite venue, Waldo Casino, will close one day later, at 11:59 pm on 31 October, under concessionaire Galaxy Casino Company Limited, a subsidiary of Galaxy Entertainment Group². The DICJ said Waldo has 111 employees². Galaxy said Waldo's gaming tables will be reallocated to its other properties, local employees will be reassigned to other casinos or non-gaming roles with existing terms unchanged, and customers holding Waldo chips can redeem them from 1 November at designated counters in Galaxy Macau Casino or StarWorld Casino¹.

The DICJ said:

Macau Daily reported that Emperor Palace opened in January 2006 and that Waldo opened on 4 July 2004, describing Waldo as Galaxy's first project in Macau and the first satellite casino at the time not using an SJM (then SJM) gaming license³. It said seven satellite casinos had still not announced a closing date as of 28 October³. Macau Business reported that Casino Grandview ceased operations on 31 July and that the only satellite casino under concessionaire Melco ceased operations on 22 September¹. As of 30 June 2025, SJM operated nine satellite casinos, and its satellite casino revenue rose 6.8 percent year on year in the first half of 2025 to HK$5.6 billion ($720 million)¹.

What it means for players

Emperor Palace stops taking bets at 11:59 pm on 30 October and Waldo at 11:59 pm on 31 October². Players holding chips, deposits or rebates from the two venues have the following options:

• Players holding Emperor Palace chips, deposits or rebates can process them at other SJM casinos from 31 October¹.
• Players holding Waldo chips can redeem them from 1 November at designated counters in Galaxy Macau Casino or StarWorld Casino¹.
• Gaming tables and machines from both venues move to other properties in their respective groups¹.

The closures are part of the wider phase-out of Macau's satellite casino system, under which third-party-operated venues had to close or be absorbed into a concessionaire's direct operations by the end of 2025⁴.

What happens next

The DICJ said it will keep coordinating with concessionaires and government departments on the orderly development of the gaming industry². It said it will keep in close contact with the Labour Affairs Bureau to ensure SJM and Galaxy honor their commitments on employee placement². The three-year transition period for satellite casinos expires on 31 December 2025². Macau Daily reported that seven satellite casinos had not yet announced closing dates³.