Inside Asian Gaming

7 hinese are reputed to be the most fervent gamblers in the world, yet, until re- cently, the range of legal gambling options available in China has been severely restrict- ed. Several journalists – seeming to delight in quaint explanations – point out that the Communist Party regards “eroticism, gam- bling and narcotics” as “the three evils.” Still, the Chinese government has decided that expanding the country’s lottery offerings is a necessary evil, and China lottery operators and suppliers are set to reap big rewards. Unfortunately, the rewards are not arriv- ing as quickly or in as much abundance as those companies’ shareholders had hoped, China’s Wild Lottery Ride Mainland China is expanding its lottery menu. The industry has huge growth potential, but the stock prices of the companies involved, touted last year as “sure bets,” have recently given in to gravity and stratospheric stock price surges have turned to slumps. The Lesser Evil Premier Deng Xiaoping realised that ideolo- gy had to give way to economic pragmatism if the Party was to survive, and introduced his “socialism with Chinese characteristics” from the late seventies.This, along with the recog- nition that illegal gambling was rampant in the country, prompted the introduction of welfare lotteries in 1987 in order to provide a regulated outlet for mainlanders to fulfil their gambling desires, with lottery profits going to fund social welfare – the need for which has increased as a result of the eco- nomic reforms, which led to massive layoffs from state-owned enterprises. Two agencies oversee lotteries in China. The China Welfare Lottery Issuance Cen- tre (CWLC) was established in 1987 to raise funds for social welfare. The China Sports Lottery Administration Centre (CSLC) was set up in 1994 to fund sports development, and in addition to lottery-type games, also offers limited football betting on matches in the major European leagues. Chinese lottery sales have grown at a compound annual rate of 30% since 1987 to reach US$8.6 billion in jcm-american.com • 800.683.7248 Nothing but the best. We’re proud to be part of it. Wynn Macau is 100% UBA, 100% ICB and 100% TransAct Epic 950. JCM CONGRATULATES C