Public backing vital for a Thailand casino biz: experts

July 5, 2022 Thailand Crime & Legal Industry Updates

The devil is likely to be in the detail regarding a parliamentary committee proposal that Thailand permit five casino resorts shared between different locations if it chooses to legalise the sector, say several industry commentators approached by GGRAsia.

Several of the commentators mentioned the challenges of liberalisation in Japan, where initially many major casino brands courted large cities, offering to be commercial partners if they applied to host a casino complex. Many operators dropped out of the race, even before the Covid-19 pandemic, with some expressing scepticism about the amount and nature of the regulation proposed for the industry.

Ben Lee, managing partner of IGamiX Management and Consulting Ltd, told that it was important Thailand built public consensus on casino liberalisation.

The kingdom, where most are Buddhist, has had a long-standing prohibition on casinos; but according to Thai media, has a large unregulated and untaxed gambling market aside from its licensed lotteries system.

Referring to the recommendations of Thailand’s National Assembly committee tasked with looking at the casino issue, Mr Lee stated: “The single most important point the committee hasn’t addressed is the population’s sentiment towards gambling.”

He added: “Unless done properly and transparently after local sentiments have been addressed, we could see the issue mired in petty politics, just as in Japan.”