Singapore Pools not paying off legalization efforts yet

This is despite – or perhaps, because of – heavy chatter leading up to the launch.

The Singapore-based lottery operator has for the past month been at the centre of a whirlwind of criticism after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in Sept gave the green light for Singapore Pools and the Singapore Turf Club to be exempt from the Remote Gambling Act run online betting platforms.

Minister for Social and Family Development Tan Chuan-Jin is reported to have said in Parliament in early Oct that the government’s stance on online gambling is “not to encourage it”, but to “recognise a reality” that there are Singaporeans who engage in it and provide a "safer space" to manage it.

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However, several religious groups as well as Members of Parliament have voiced their concerns over the decision

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“I am dead against the decision to open up our nation to online gambling. Whom exactly will this benefit?” said former Nominated Member of Parliament Gerald Giam in a Facebook post last month, noting that online betting could become a gateway to more high stakes gambling.

In a letter to the Catholic community in Singapore, Archbishop William Goh said the church shares the concerns of many Singaporeans on the moral and social implications of gambling on society.

“Recognizing that the stakes are high, the Catholic Church has appealed to the authorities to closely monitor the effectiveness of the move whilst taking all necessary measures to help those who may fall victim to online gambling,” he added.

The National Council of Churches Singapore, which represents more than 250 churches, had earlier called for a review of the government's decision.

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Singapore Pools and Singapore Turf Club – both operated by the Singapore Totalisator Board, a statutory board under the Ministry of Finance –had applied to be exempt from the laws to curb online betting in July last year

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Singapore Turf Club is expected to launch its online betting services for horse racing later this month.

Yet, Singapore Pools’ much-discussed online betting services have been launched noticeably without fanfare – despite it having sunk millions of dollars into it.

Singapore Pools was reported to have paid British online gambling software provider OpenBet a sum of S$10 million in 2015 to replace its website with one which can offer sports betting.

OpenBet powers the online gambling platforms of major bookmakers such as William Hill, Paddy Power and Betfair.

Of course, that investment is paltry compared to what Singapore Pools can expect to rake in.

Singapore’s online gambling industry is estimated to have raked in some S$500 million in 2014, before gambling portals based locally and overseas were shut down.

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The global online gambling market is currently worth around US$37 billion a year, according to the American Gaming Association

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Punters in Singapore will now be able to place bets via the internet on sports such as football and Formula 1 motor racing, on top of lottery services including 4D and Toto.

Online casino games such as poker and blackjack are disallowed under the current regulations.

However, it is understood that OpenBet’s software allows for these online casino games to be easily added on, should the regulations be relaxed in future.

And, as things stand, no one is betting against the possibility of that happening.

Online gambling in Singapore might have started without fanfare, but it certainly isn’t going away quietly.