Macau Casinos to make China’s Gambling Hub Richest Place on Earth

Casinos in Macau responsible for soon-to-be richest place on the planet.

Casinos in Macau to make Richest Place on Earth A new study by International Money Fund (IMF) is looking closely at the richest localities in the world. Qatar, a sovereign state in Western Asia, is the current title holder, where a population of 2.64 million earns an average of $139,151 per year. According to the study, however, Qatar will lose its position by 2020 to Macau, China’s one and only gambling hub.

The shift in wealth is no doubt reliant on the proliferation of gambling in Macau casinos. The autonomous territory—one with a moderate level of self-governance—is the only place in China where casino gambling is legal. As such, it’s no surprise the area’s gambling enterprise is so wildly affluent; growing faster and faster with each passing year.

Casinos in Macau Increasing Wealth Per Capita

Not even two decades ago, Macau was a territory Portugal. It had been since 1557, when the Chinese government leased the area to the Portuguese Empire to serve as a trading post. The degree of governance shifted several times over the years, then in 1999, Macau was officially returned to China. However, it sustained semi-sovereignty upon transfer, giving the local government the authority to legalize casino gambling.

In 2001, the first casinos appeared in the territory. That year, Macau’s gross domestic product (GDP) came in at $34,500 per capita. Now, 17 years later, the Macau gambling industry is bustling, home to the Cotai Strip—the eastern hemisphere’s bigger and more glamorous mimicking of the Las Vegas Strip in North America. It is the second richest locality in the world, behind Qatar… for the moment.

The IMF report suggests that, by 2020, the so-called ‘Monte Carlo of the Orient‘ is going to surpass Qatar as the richest place, per capita, on the planet. The study’s GDP forecast shows that, two years from now, Macau will earn approximately $143,116 per person. Qatar’s GDP will rise, but at a lower rate. And by 2023, the gap between them will increase even further, with Macau projecting $172,681 per capita, and Qatar $158,117 per capita.

Macau Casinos 100% Responsible for Growing Wealth

There’s absolutely no denying that Macau would not be anywhere close to where it is now without the presence of so many opulent casinos and luxury hotels, combined with the fact that gambling is illegal everywhere else in China. As a direct result, the entire nation’s gambling liquidity is funneled into a single district.

Macau serves as the gambling hub for the entire Pan Pacific region, as well, catering to the wealthiest junkets on Mainland China and beyond. According to economic statistics, the gambling industry supplies at least 50% of the region’s GDP, and funds more than 70% of the government’s coffers

As of 2016, there are 36 casinos in Macau. Most are multi-billion-dollar properties, many being investments of North America’s largest, Vegas-based corporations like Las Vegas Sands Corp, MGM Resorts International and Wynn Resorts International.

Rounding out the list of top five richest locations per capita by 2020, IMF projects; Macau, Qatar, Luxembourg, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam.