Since Cambodia passed a new law at the end of 2019 banning online casino, the countries operators have been adapting to the new landscape post-ban. So far, the 118 casinos operating within the territory have observed the ban, and ceased to offer online casino services to Cambodian residents. The ban follows a deeply divisive period of politico-economic debate that concluded with the Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sun issuing a directive to eradicate the option for online casino. Casino gambling has not been completely outlawed, however, there are many thriving venues still frequented by tourists and locals alike.
Exponential growth in Cambodia spurred on an era of rapid economic growth, countless construction projects have now been left incomplete as financing shortfalls follow the ban of online gambling. ©Free-Photos/Pixabay
Gambling in Cambodia is only legal at brick & mortar venues from 2020, and industry analysts look on with interest to see how the situation will develop. The biggest operators will not experience such a detrimental impact as the smaller enterprises. To enforce the ban, police, military personnel and government officials went on a tour throughout Cambodia, visiting and checking in with the nation’s biggest casinos to ensure that they are fully complying with the revocation of the online casino license. These checks will reportedly continue well into the future, to ensure that when the media attention has faded away, Cambodia’s casinos will obey the new laws.
The ban on online casino has definitely been felt in the industry. After the Cambodian government ceased granting new licenses in 2019, and with all active licenses expiring at the turn of the year, the industry has taken a huge hit whilst losing its primary source of revenue. The majority of Cambodia’s casinos that haven’t already are expected to shut-down in the coming. Job losses are expected to be severe, and following the ban on online casinos, up to 8,000 people are expected to already have had contracts terminated.
Regardless of the absence of the Cambodia approved online casinos for the locals, Cambodians keep gambling at the overseas casinos online casinos accepting Cambodia players. And even if there are a lot of gambling websites accepting the gamblers from Cambodia, we highly recommend you focusing only on the top online casinos for Cambodian players. Thousands lose jobs, casinos shut as Cambodia bans online gambling Over the past two years, Sihanoukville has seen nearly three dozen Chinese-run casinos spring up, with another 70 under construction. Use our exhaustive casino directory to list and compare the top online gambling sites in Cambodia. GamingZion’s algorithm will find you the perfect online casinos in Cambodia along with the best Cambodian online sportsbooks and bingo sites and without hassle, so you can start playing as fast as possible. What’s more, you’ll get instant access to exclusive online gambling promotions in.
Looking into the context of this latest action, it is clear to see that pressure has been applied from China. Xi Jinping has made no secret at his distaste in liberalizing gambling laws, and feels passionately about eradicating casino industries in Asian countries that solely target Chinese customers. After successfully applying influence to several neighboring regions, Cambodia has duly followed the will of the Chinese premiership to initiate this latest directive to end online gambling aimed at Chinese customers.
The coastal city of Sihanoukville in the south-west had experienced runaway growth since the establishment of a casino industry in 2016. Fuelled by international tourism and Chinese money, the city has had its economic engine ripped out. By best economic estimates, this was an industry that was generating between $3.5bn – $5bn a year – with 90% coming from online gambling. Whilst land-based casinos serve an important purpose in establishing a casino business, the bulk of the income is generated online.
Speaking with reporters regarding the future fate of the 118 casinos now faced with a significant shortfall in their net revenue.
I can say that all arcade gambling operations in the kingdom completely ceased after the ban. After ceasing online gambling, some casinos are still operating for one or two months to see if they can make earnings, but we believe more casinos will cease their business.Ros Phearun, Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), Government of Cambodia
Sihanoukville has become a ghost town since the announcement by Cambodia’s Prime Minister. Half completed building projects have been abandoned, the city is covered by construction sites that have had financing completely removed or stalled, and the local economy has been dealt a catastrophic blow. A mass migration of people too, over 100,000 people are said to have left the city, over 800 restaurants have closed, and house prices have begun tumbling. Many of the cities inhabitants were international workers, who without the economic stability that the online casino revenues provided, are left without any opportunity to sustain themselves in the new financially spares environment.
The financial opportunities were tremendous in this part of the world for the past several years, and those that bet big on the continuation of the prosperity of cities like Sihanoukville, have been dealt a catastrophic blow by the implementation of the online casino ban. Many locals borrowed money from banks to start business to meet the surging demand for luxury apartments, car rentals, leisure venues, hotels, restaurants etc. the investment in the city was enormous. The problem was, all of this was underpinned by the revenue being generated by the casinos and their online platforms.
The economic surge in growth showed signs of faltering well before the ban though, back in June 2019 a tragic accident on one of the many building sites throughout the city killed 28 workers. Safety precautions were clearly being ignored, and the authorities launched a massive crackdown on rogue developers taking careless risks with the safety of their employees.
It has been a tumultuous few years for Cambodia, and the exponential growth experienced in the previous years has come to a sudden and dramatic end. The government will need to initiate quantitative easing measures, invest heavily in infrastructure, and spur on linear growth that will ultimately relieve the difficult situation the current administration find themselves in.
An official said the government would conduct inspections of all casinos to make sure online gambling had ceased, or else the casinos would lose their license.
PHNOM PENH —The Cambodian government on Monday reiterated a previous decision to not renew any online gambling licenses beyond December 31 this year, potentially bring the lucrative sector to a standstill starting next year.
Online gambling has fuelled the casino boom in the coastal town of Sihanoukville, though it has also raised red flags over potential money laundering. The southern town has seen a massive influx on investment aimed at the construction and gambling sectors.
Ros Phearun, a Finance Ministry official, said the government was battling money laundering and took the decision to end online gambling because they didn’t have the technical capabilities to monitor the “new” technology.
He added that the government would conduct inspections of all casinos to make sure online gambling had ceased, or else the casinos would lose their license.
“In Cambodia, we try to eliminate money laundering. Thus, we decide to close [online gambling].”
Kheang Phearum, Preah Sihanouk provincial spokesperson, said that when the directive goes into effect, the authorities will implement the measure to end online gambling.
“The directive from the government states important points, which the local administration needs to abide by,” he said. “We have to implement what is set by the government.”
Prime Minister Hun Sen had issued to directive to end online gambling in August. Last week, the premier said that he had learned online gambling operations were fueling activities of foreign criminal syndicates.
“I see that if Cambodia's economy continues to depend on online gambling, Cambodia's national security will be threatened,” he said at the Sea Festival in Kampot. “We’ll be under the harm of organized crime groups who will come to Cambodia to carry out their activities.
Cambodians have also protested the influx of Chinese money and nationals to Sihanoukville, which they say had affected their way of living in the coastal town.
However, Meas Nee, a social analyst, said it was yet to be seen if the government could enforce the ban uniformly.
“This is the right thing to do indeed,” he said. “However, related to legal implementation, if it's still lax, it will still be ineffective.”
According to Ros Phearun, there were around 140 casino operations in the country, with the government bringing in $80 million from the sector.