China looks west
Recent political moves within the Asian gambling industry have revealed that China is taking an active and interested role in influencing a legal regional market.
drive to raise tax revenue
The most recent tell was news the China-controlled government of Hong Kong is considering legalizing sports betting on basketball betting in a drive to raise tax revenue.
According to the South China Morning Post, the unprecedented Beijing-backed move intends to boost Hong Kong’s revenues against an estimated deficit of almost HK$100bn ($12.87bn) via HK$1.5bn ($193m) in taxes from legalizing basketball betting.
According to inside sources, China’s Special Administrative Region (SAR) of Macau is mulling allowing the Hong Kong Jockey Club to offer a regulated basketball sports betting market.
Government exec fuels belief
The SCMP also cites the unnamed source as stating the Financial Secretary of Hong Kong’s government, Paul Chan, has changed his previous anti-basketball-betting stance.
illegally betting on basketball to the tune of over $6.4bn
Chan, and by extension the SAR’s u-turn on basketball betting represents a major policy shift. Last year, HKJC CEO Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges stated there were around 100,000 to 150,000 people in Hong Kong illegally betting on basketball to the tune of over HK$50bn (US$6.4bn).
At the time of Engelbrecht-Bresges comment, Chan said the Macau administration “had no intention” to legalize the market. Despite the HKJC’s assertion that basketball betting would prompt 50% to 60% of people to switch from illegal to regulated betting operators, Chan objected, citing the move would affect the young generation and increase national betting participation.
Chan, however, will on Wednesday present a new budget with a “a focus on fiscal consolidation strategies” with local media reporting a “a high likelihood” Macau will pass basketball betting into law in 2025.
Slow boat to launch
According to macaobusiness.com, even if Chan’s government gives basketball netting the nod in 2025, it would take designated regulator the HKJC “years to prepare for the launch.”
Nevertheless, as Hong Kong legislator Kenneth Fok revealed, Sands China has inked a five-year deal with the National Basketball Association for NBA games to return to the SAR with two pre-season games per annum.