Hong Kong lawmakers approve bill to legalise basketball betting
Hong Kong’s legislature has passed a bill to legalise basketball betting, approving the measure by 77 votes to two with two abstentions, in a move aimed at curbing illegal gambling and boosting tax revenue.
The Betting Duty (Amendment) Bill 2025 will establish a regulatory framework mirroring that for football betting, legalised in 2003. It sets a duty of 50% on net stake receipts and expands the remit of the city’s Betting and Lotteries Commission to cover basketball betting.
Under the law, the Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Alice Mak, will be empowered to issue a licence to the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC), the city’s sole legal bookmaker, and impose conditions to ensure responsible gambling, as reported by Hong Kong Free Press (HKFP).
Financial Secretary Paul Chan first raised the proposal in his February budget, projecting that basketball betting could generate HK$1.5 billion to HK$2 billion ($192 million–$256 million) annually in tax revenue to help ease a prolonged fiscal deficit.
Mak said the policy was designed to channel betting away from illegal platforms, not to encourage gambling. “We will not stop here. To combat illegal gambling, we will continue educational and promotional efforts, as well as conduct tough enforcement actions,” she told reporters after the vote.
The HKJC estimated the turnover of illegal basketball betting in 2024 at between HK$70 billion and HK$90 billion, involving around 430,000 residents.
Several lawmakers backed the government’s position, arguing that regulation was necessary to address widespread illegal gambling. “Illegal gambling platforms have become omnipresent in society through the internet. It’s very easy to be exposed to them with a mobile phone in your hand,” legislator Nixie Lam said.
But critics warned the move risked fuelling gambling addiction. Education sector lawmaker Chu Kwok-keung, who voted against the bill, said: “Legalising basketball betting, to put it bluntly, is simply opening one more avenue for gambling.” He argued the legalisation of football betting two decades ago had expanded, rather than reduced, gambling.
Another opponent, Tik Chi-yuen, said: “The government should crack down on illegal gambling, not compete with criminal syndicates for profits.”
The government said the proportion of under-18s seeking help for gambling problems has remained low over the past decade, but pledged to set up a new centre promoting anti-gambling messages for youth, without giving a timetable.
The HKJC will remain the exclusive licence holder for legalised betting in Hong Kong, which also includes lotteries, horse racing, and football betting.
https://www.yogonet.com/international/news/2025/09/11/115300-hong-kong-lawmakers-approve-bill-to-legalise-basketball-betting