Every poker machine in NSW will be cashless within five years under an ambitious plan to overhaul the gaming industry.
The contentious package passed a snap meeting of state cabinet on Sunday.
"It's not about being a wowser, this is about looking after the vulnerable," NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet told business leaders on Monday.
"This is about stopping money laundering and at the same time ensuring our nightlife in the city and our pubs and clubs thrive with entertainment and live music."
Pubs and clubs will be incentivised to diversify away from pokies with no-interest loans and one-off grants of $50,000 to invest in new income streams such as live music and food.
A team headed by Department of NSW Premier and Cabinet secretary Michael Coutts-Trotter will implement a plan to remove cash from pokies between 2024 and 2028.
Gamblers will have self-imposed spending limits, which can be altered and the implementation team will consider daily limits.
No personal data will be collected or retained by the government or pubs and clubs.
The plan was welcomed by key independent crossbencher Alex Greenwich.
"Now is the moment," he said.
"I'm looking forward to the full release of the government's plan, and hope the opposition will join this multi-partisan push for reform."
Problem gambling has become a major election issue after a NSW Crime Commission report found billions of dollars in dirty money was being laundered through machines every year.
Two in every five poker machines globally were in NSW after the previous Labor government turned pubs and clubs into "mini-casinos", Mr Perrottet said.
"That transition will be difficult, but I've committed completely with industry that I'll work very closely to get that done," he said.
"A sign of any great society is how it looks after its most vulnerable people."
Labor has promised to introduce mandatory trials for 500 of the state's 90,000 poker machines, with leader Chris Minns cautious about implementing mandatory change without more evidence it will work.
© AAP 2023