Secretary for Home Affairs and Youth of Hong Kong: "Predictive markets" sports betting is considered illegal gambling and the promotion of new gambling projects should be halted

April 17th – The Hong Kong government has decided to suspend plans for a basketball betting project, RTHK reports. Hong Kong’s Secretary for Home Affairs, Caspar Tsui, told the outlet in an interview that authorities have tracked rapid growth in the “prediction market” in recent years: monthly trading volume jumped from under $100 million two years ago to over $13 billion last year, with nearly 40% of transactions tied to sports. The government worries launching a new betting project now would draw more public attention and could push people toward illegal gambling via the prediction market. As a result, it will pause new betting project promotions and conduct further research before deciding next steps. Tsui noted existing regulated betting projects have a mature monitoring system to control risks, but the prediction market remains uncertain. “As a responsible government, we need to first research its impact and prevalence in Hong Kong,” he said. He added the government works closely with the Hong Kong Jockey Club, which has strict illegal gambling monitoring and dedicated anti-gambling experts. The two will collaborate to get the Club’s professional advice for targeted anti-illegal gambling measures. Tsui repeated the government’s consistent policy is to discourage gambling, and sports betting via the prediction market is illegal. Authorities will step up publicity and education to help the public understand gambling harms and avoid illegal activities.