Hong Kong’s Financial Secretary, Paul Chan, said the government will explore the possibility of allowing basketball betting and has invited the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) to discuss it.
In response, the HKJC stated its intention to submit a “detailed proposal” to the government.
When the Hong Kong government announced its new budget on Wednesday morning it was expected the issue of adding basketball to the SAR’s small list of legal betting activities would be raised. Over the past month, some Hong Kong legislators have suggested government should legalize basketball betting in order to raise revenue and combat illegal betting.
Chan duly addressed the issue in the new budget, commenting, “In combating illegal gambling, many members of the community have been concerned about illegal basketball betting in recent years. According to the latest assessment of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, illegal basketball betting amounted to as much as HK$70 billion to HK$90 billion (US$8.75 billion to US$11.3 billion) last year.”
However, Chan did not confirm whether basketball betting would actually be implemented or whether there was a timetable for exploring the possibility, stating only, “To combat illegal basketball betting, the government will actively explore the authorization of basketball betting activities and will invite the Hong Kong Jockey Club to submit proposals.”
In a statement issued hours after Chan’s budget speech, the HKJC said it “welcomes and fully supports the announcement of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government … that it will invite the Club to submit a proposal to implement regulated basketball betting.
“The Club agrees that there is a strong case for taking this important step as an effective means to combat and arrest the rising trend of illegal basketball betting, which leads to numerous social problems, such as loan sharking and underage gambling. According to the Club’s estimates, the turnover of illegal basketball betting has reached around HK$70 billion to HK$90 billion last year.
“As a not-for-profit sports and charity organisation rooted in Hong Kong for 140 years, with the sole purpose of acting continuously for the betterment of society, the Club has for decades been the trusted partner of the [government] in conducting a legal and responsible gambling regime under the laws of Hong Kong. The Club’s unique Integrated Business Model has proven itself time and again to be the best and most effective way of combatting illegal betting. The extension of the regulated regime to basketball betting will not only support the [government’s] efforts and enhance its effectiveness in combatting illegal betting but will also strengthen the sustainability of the Club’s contribution to the community through impactful charity donations and significant tax revenues to the [government]. It is a matter of public interest.
“The Club will submit a detailed proposal to the [government] shortly. We look forward to working closely with the [government] to implement this important policy initiative as soon as possible.”
Under current Hong Kong law, legal betting activities are restricted to horse racing, football betting, Mark Six and licensed mahjong parlors.
Over the past two years, many people in Hong Kong have proposed legalizing basketball betting, and the Hong Kong Jockey Club also strived to legalize basketball betting last year. However, at that time Chan rejected the proposal, pointing out that the Hong Kong government had no intention of taking such action.
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