Number of ATMs has spiked since ’05
Judiciary Police in Taipa have rounded up 23 suspects for alleged fraudulent use of UnionPay debit cards.
According to the Macau Post Daily, the arrestees conducted sham cash transactions so clients could get money by swiping their cards on point-of-sale machines. Those taken into custody include shop managers and staff members who accommodated casino customers looking for extra cash.
The Macau Daily Times reports that Macau has the world’s second-highest density of automated teller machines, with 254 ATMs per 100,000 adults in 2015, according to a report from the International Monetary Fund. The number has spiked since 2005, in the early years of the casino boom in Macau. At that time, there were just 56 ATMs per 100,000 adults. That’s six times the regional average of 52 ATMs in East Asia and throughout the Pacific, the Times reported.
The suspects were transferred to the Public Prosecution Office to face charges of computer fraud and criminal organization.
