As many as 120,000 Chinese nationals may have departed Cambodia since the announcement of a ban on online gambling last month, about half of the estimated number living in the country.
That’s according to comments from Cambodia’s Interior Ministry, but state-run media outlets in China are painting a different picture of just a few thousand leaving. One writer for the ultra-nationalist Global Times said the exodus may amount to no more that 5,000 people who had gone to Cambodia believing it would be a “shortcut to wealth via cheating and extortion.”
China is stepping up a crackdown on gambling activity by its citizens offshore, threatening what has become a lucrative industry for gaming operators.
However, despite the Communist Party’s call to halt online gaming, which causes an illegal outflow of money, business in Southeast Asia is booming. In the Philippines, as well as in Cambodia where it was recently banned, online casinos have become a major driver of the economy.
All forms of gambling by Chinese people in overseas casinos are illegal, according to Beijing.
Macau has also weighed in on the issue, forbidding local junket operators from using the territory as a settling platform for gambling services provided elsewhere, reported Bloomberg last month.
As the only place in China where gambling is legal, the Special Administrative Region of Macau has a lot on the line.
There are signs that the offshore services are penetrating more deeply into China’s population than expected. Some online gaming websites offer punters wagers as low as 10 yuan and have round-the-clock live streams, making them easily accessible by lower-income Chinese in rural areas, who do not have the means to go to Macau.
In response to Chinese pressure, Cambodia decided to phase out online gaming, initiating the exodus. Reports noted that two-thirds of the Chinese population in Cambodia’s Vietnamese border town of Bavet are prepared for a similar exit.
However, Cambodia may yet revoke its decision, as online gaming has become a significant economic driver in Sihanoukville. The business has attracted hundreds of thousands of Chinese workers, catering to clients that mostly reside within mainland China.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen issued a directive last month that orders the halting of new online gaming permits, which also means that the dozens of licenses that will expire this year will not be renewed.
The move was intended to tackle “security and social order” as well as “foreign criminals” that have been engaging in “online fraud.” However, there are no details yet on how the directive will be implemented.
Last month the Philippine Amusement Gaming Corporation announced a suspension in accepting applications for offshore gaming operations, which China hoped meant that it could jointly tackle criminal activities, including online gambling.
China had previously expressed concerns, calling on the Philippines to halt all forms of online gambling after the nation said that it had caused hundreds of millions of yuan to illegally flow out of its economy.
However, President Rodrigo Duterte said earlier this month said that online gambling will continue despite the opposition from Beijing, citing job opportunities and the government revenue acquired from the activity.
Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators are expected to deliver some $154 million (1.24 billion patacas) in license fees alone for the government this year.
According to reports, the online gambling industry has occupied a significant number of office rentals and condominium sales in Manila.
The activity is responsible for employing some 350,000 people, over 100,000 of which are Chinese, many of whom are responsible for marketing and customer service.
Meanwhile, several dens of online gambling and alleged telecommunication fraud conducted by Chinese nationals have been recently busted by authorities, in both Cambodia and the Philippines.
According to the most recent data, nearly 1,000 suspects have been apprehended by Chinese and Cambodian police in a joint crackdown on online gambling, telecommunication fraud and gang crimes this year. DB
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