Southeast Asia is a dream market for many iGaming operators. However, gambling is mostly restricted or banned across Southeast Asia, with only a few countries allowing it in a clearly regulated way. Situation is complicated primarily because of a wide mix of legal systems and religious beliefs, which means the approach to gambling can vary a lot depending on the country.

According to the Imarc Group, the Gambling market size is expected to reach $5,5 Trillion by 2033 with a yearly growth rate of 5,24%. While the demand for Gambling is high in the region, local governments have been slow in creating laws to manage it. And the key reason for that is the role of religion and culture. In Indonesia, Brunei, and Malaysia, gambling is often completely banned due to religious laws that consider it forbidden. Highly likely that this will not change in the Muslim-majority countries leaving potential only to those countries where religion impact on society is not that strong.

If you are here to understand the political and legal environment for gambling in SE Asia, then let’s not waste time on small talks.

Legal Side of The Question
When it comes to the legal side of gambling, Southeast Asia is way different from Europe and even South America where iGaming operators like 777 fun are acquiring licenses from local regulators and starting to build local presence. SE Asia is not the same at all except maybe Philippines and Singapore that have created specific rules to allow and regulate gambling in both land-based and online formats. We have to admit that having more secular legal systems is the key to start iGaming adoption and most of the countries are very far from even taking the first step towards the change. Their governments take gambling very seriously because many politicians are concerned over addiction and rising crime rates. On the other hand, there are the Philippines and Singapore who make additional financial streams from taxes and use gambling as a way to promote tourism. They simply stick to the concept where it’s easier to regulate rather than spend millions of dollars on trying to kill the hydra of black-market gambling.

Enforcement also varies heavily across the region. For instance, Brunei and Indonesia have strict penalties against both players and operators. Others, like Vietnam or Thailand, ban most forms of gambling on paper, but in reality, underground betting is widespread and enforcement can be inconsistent. Then there are “grey zones,” where online gambling may not be clearly legal or illegal, and foreign websites operate freely despite local bans. Players take the advantages of technology to access international platforms. They use VPNs and crypto wallets to remain anonymous so that nobody can track what they are doing online. Local authorities are not very happy about that but it’s either hard or impossible to identify tech-savvy gamblers.

The Philippines
In the Philippines, gambling is regulated by PAGCOR who issues licenses for operators and regulates the market. Licenses typically come with certain obligations. Brands are required to promote responsible gambling, prevent access by minors, and be financially transparent. Licensed operators pay 5% taxes on gross gaming revenue along with licensing fees. This helped them better control the industry while also gaining economic benefits.

Singapore
Singapore takes Gambling with a much more strict approach. They have only two government-approved operators (Singapore Pools and Singapore Turf Club) who are allowed to run online gambling websites. Singapore doesn’t allow private companies to offer online gambling services to residents in order to control the industry. They stick to the Remote Gambling Act when issuing licenses and monitoring casinos. These regulations mean that the platforms are safe to bet on, their games of chance are fair and cannot be accessible when you are under 21. Singapore’s system focuses strongly on consumer protection, using identity verification and betting limits to reduce problem gambling.

Indonesia
Gambling is completely illegal in Indonesia because of the Islamic law. The authorities can even track players who use VPNs with a certain level of success. But despite heavy bans, illegal gambling is still on a rise in Indonesia causing many social and economic challenges. Indonesia is one of the countries where there are no reasons to expect the shift towards legalizing the iGaming industry.

Malaysia
In Malaysia we see a very familiar picture of gambling being banned. The only difference is that it is completely banned for Muslims while partially allowed for non-Muslim citizens under specific licenses for specific games. Authorities rarely chase individual gamblers and mostly target illegal operators and illegal online casinos. Because of this, many Malaysians stick to visiting offshore sites that sometimes don’t have any license at all.

Thailand
In Thailand, gambling is largely illegal except government-run lotteries (if you can call this a gambling at all) and horse racing. Just like in Malaysia, local authorities rarely chase individuals while focusing most of their efforts on cracking down on illegal online casinos and small gambling venues. Local gamblers often play on offshore sites while losing benefits of regulation and contributing to operators from 3rd party countries.

Vietnam
In Vietnam, gambling is partially restricted. When it comes to online gambling, the government bans it heavily while still allowing certain sports betting and land-based casinos to stay in business. There’s an ongoing legal reform happening in Vietnam during which authorities are testing licensed betting systems. But even now enforcement remains extremely active against unauthorized operators. Enforcement mainly targets operators, not players which leads to many local gamblers being lured into different offshore casinos.

Myanmar
In Myanmar, the legal status of the Gambling industry is nuclear and outdated. Gambling laws target land-based casinos and barely touch online gaming platforms. Enforcement is weak and inconsistent so while land-based gambling laws exist, online enforcement is close to non-existent leaving most of the players and operators in the grey area where they meet without even a shadow of regulation.