Thailand Pauses Casino Industry Decision Until 2023
The Thailand governments plans to develop a legalized casino industry in the country have been paused until 2023, to allow the election to first conclude. The elections which are due to take place in May 2023 are going to be contentious in the overall success of the bid to legalize casinos in Thailand. Given the success of other government-backed gambling projects, Thailand’s economy is anticipating a windfall of revenue if they can align the details internally. Experts on the matter predict that the move is certain and Thailand will ultimately become a key piece of Asia’s casino landscape.
The Thailand government’s plans to develop a legalized casino industry in the country have been paused until 2023, to allow the election to first conclude. ©Tik_Pitak/Pixabay
At the MGS Summit in Macau this year, the Spectrum Asia CEO – Paul Bromberg spoke about the progress being made in Thailand towards opening their country to the casino industry. In his comments, he noted that the progress towards this transition has been slowing in recent months. The country has been investigating the societal impacts of casinos, and the parliamentary committee tasked with this investigation had only just submitted its findings to the government in the month of July.
There’s a lot of issues to sort out in Thailand with regards to the political landscape of the country. In the runup to this election the incumbent Prime Minister Preyut Chan-o-cha has still not confirmed which party he will represent. The youngest daughter of the former Prime Minister of Thailand is also seen as a real contender to take control of the country. This uncertainty and instability have put blockers on key decision-making until there is more long-term outlooks in place.
Without the clarity of who will control the government, it’s almost impossible to resolve the question of casino legality. The priorities for the next few months are not going to be focused on building legislation for the gaming sector, but securing the future of the country in times of much political uncertainty.
Thailand Planning a Casino Resort in Each of its Five Regions
According to the plans submitted to the parliamentary committee of Thailand, there are plans to build a casino resort in each of the five main regions of Thailand. This would include Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, Krabi, and Phangnga. With that being said, there are many reasons to suspect that the building campaign will begin in the country’s capital. As an early use-case of the new legislation, it makes sense to not build across the rest of the regions until the business model has been truly stress-tested.
The question looming is whether Thailand will be able to push the narrative for casino implementation over the line. This dream has a long way to go before it will become a reality, but with true bipartisan support to make it happen, there is a sense of profound confidence within the Thai business ecosystem. Even the public opinion polls that have been shared with the greater populace suggest that Thailand’s population would support the integration of casinos.
The feeling is that the support for Thailand’s casino legislation is at the highest level it has been for the past 50 years, so it’s really now or never when it comes to bringing the industry forward. With Thailand’s massive tourism industry that brings thousands of visitors from across the world each year, the country is really poised to capitalize on its position on the global stage. A number of leading casino operators from Europe and North America have expressed interest in building an integrated resort business in the country if the tender bid becomes available.
