Galaxy Entertainment Group is believed to have become the second Macau operator after MGM China to complete the rollout of smart gaming tables across its entire mass baccarat inventory, according to Citigroup.
The claim formed part of a Monday note from Citi analysts George Choi and Timothy Chau following their monthly Macau table survey, which included an update on the deployment of smart tables across the city. As reported by Inside Asian Gaming, Macau’s concessionaires have been busy implementing smart table technology over the past year following the success enjoyed by MGM, which has enjoyed the benefits of early mover status post-COVID.
According to Citi, there were another 74 new smart tables operational in the grind mass area at Galaxy Macau during the bank’s January visit, plus another nine new tables at StarWorld.
“We believe Galaxy has become the second casino operator in Macau to have fully deployed smart tables for its Mass baccarat operations,” the analysts wrote.
They also estimate the Sands China – with 19 recently added smart tables at The Venetian’ Macao’s grind mass area, 80 at The Parisian Macao and 12 in the high limit area of Sands Macao – is at about 80% deployment while Wynn is at 60% and Melco at 50%. Melco’s Studio City is already at full deployment with the focus now on City of Dreams.
Citi observed smart tables at SJM’s Grand Lisboa for the first time with 63 tables operational
“It is worth emphasizing that smart tables can help increase the speed of the game (more games can be dealt per hour), and this is one of the important drivers (which should not be ignored) in our +7% FY25 Macau GGR growth forecast,” said Choi and Chau.
Despite the positive forecast, the analysts also observed the traditional pre-Chinese New Year slowdown during their January table survey, with the number of whales seen in Macau’s premium mass gaming rooms and the average bet size of premium mass players both down year-on-year. Some operators have also taken the opportunity carry out minor renovations of their casino floors before the Chinese New Year period at the end of the month.
“We maintain our view that January 2025 GGR will fall 2% year-on-year to MOP$19.0 billion (US$2.37 billion) but continue to anticipate positive GGR growth for January and February combined,” Citi said.
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