Hong Kong's government has suspended its plan to launch legal basketball betting, citing the rise of prediction markets. Home and Youth Affairs Minister Alice Mak Mei-kuen said the decision considers local circumstances and evolving external conditions to protect public interest. Former lawmaker Doreen Kong Yuk-foon called for predicting technological influences in future policy papers.
Hong Kong's government confirmed on Monday the suspension of its plan to launch basketball betting scheduled for September, citing the rise of cryptocurrency-based prediction markets. An amendment bill to the Betting Duty Ordinance passed in September had empowered the Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs to license a basketball betting operator to tackle illegal gambling.
Home and Youth Affairs Minister Alice Mak Mei-kuen stressed on Tuesday that the decision was made solely by the government, considering Hong Kong's own circumstances, trends in illegal betting, and the rapidly evolving external environment. "There is no need for excessive speculation," Mak said. She noted the amendment aimed to curb illegal gambling but did not oblige the government to issue a licence regardless of changing conditions. "As a responsible government, we believe we must make decisive decisions when protecting the public interest," Mak said.
Hong Kong's sole legal betting operator, the Hong Kong Jockey Club, and lawmakers were caught off guard by the abrupt decision, with some believing it aligns with Beijing's gambling clampdown amid a surge in prediction markets.
Former lawmaker Doreen Kong Yuk-foon said: "The development of technology is faster than the pace of legislation. In such a situation, if the government is worried that betting will be easily manipulated by others, halting it is not a bad thing." She urged that future policy papers include predictions on technological development to avoid a repeat.
Prediction markets are a cryptocurrency-based gambling model where participants trade "shares" based on the outcome of specific "yes-or-no" events, such as elections and sports competitions.
