The requirement is part of a raft of new anti-money laundering measures intended to address criticisms by the United States and international agencies of Macau's present regulations. A report by the US Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs in March, for example, said that ''the gaming industry, in particular, provides an avenue for the laundering of illicit funds.''

Macau has long resisted setting a specific line for tracking gambling transactions, arguing that its casino industry is vastly different from that of the US because of the predominance of high-stakes play. Casinos in Las Vegas are required to track customers with total cash transactions of more than US$3,000 (HK$23,318); in Macau, such a limit would ensnare nearly every VIP bettor.

The new rules will differentiate casinos from banks, jewelers and other businesses who handle large cash transactions. The proposal would require these businesses to report suspect transactions of more than US$10,000, according to Jorge Costa Oliveira, director of the government International Law Office.

Macau has required casinos and junket agents to report customers suspected of attempting to launder funds since 1998 or face a potential fine of between 100,000 (HK$97,000) and 5 million patacas. In the first four years after the rule came into force, however, no reports were filed. ''Enforcement has been weak,'' concluded the 2004 US-Macau Policy Act report.

The International Monetary Fund sent a team to Macau last year to review the city's progress in improving its money laundering controls. Anselmo Teng, chairman of the Monetary Authority of Macau, said in March that the review was positive, but the government has so far declined to give the IMF permission to publish its conclusions as it did after a 2002 mission.

The Waldo and Sands Macau casinos already track the identity of customers making large cash transactions. Galaxy Casino's Waldo, records all VIP transactions of more than HK$100,000 and all transactions of more than HK$50,000 are reviewed by surveillance staff and pit bosses. Junket agents are also required to fully identify players, according to a policy statement.

``We want to do the right thing but at the same time we don't want to frighten people away,'' said Ken Gotfried, Galaxy's senior vice president for gaming operations.

The only gamblers that would be put off by requirements to show ID are those using illicit funds, according to Stephen Vickers, chief executive of corporate investigators International Risk in Hong Kong. Gotfried, however, disagreed, saying that many gamblers just like the privacy of anonymous play.

zach.coleman@singtaonewscorp.com