Vietnam keen to let locals gamble at Phu Quoc

The government of Vietnam has not been too keen on the idea of allowing local residents to participate in gambling activities. One of the country’s biggest initiatives, though, the casino project located on Phu Quoc Island, in the province of Kien Giang, located in the South North of Vietnam, has served as an important litmus test to see what would happen if gamblers were actually allowed to participate in gambling.

The purpose of the test was to gauge the economic windfall relative to any perceived or actual societal harm. The pilot test, which has been on for the past three years and is due to come to an end at the end of 2022, may have proven that allowing locals to gambler does have its benefit, and the Ministry of Finance is eager to see the Phu Quoc Island trial continue for another two years.

Part of this desire is clearly stoked by the COVID-19 pandemic and the commercial slowdown that casinos experienced in general. With limited traveling from abroad, Vietnam’s casinos had to rely on moderate targeted foot traffic. But unlike all other properties in the country, Phu Quoc is the only one that can legally accept local gamblers and is even encouraged to by the government for the purposes of the government’s pilot plan. Another casino which is also improved by the same program has not actually launched yet.

Now, the Deputy Minister of Finance Nguyen Duc Chi wants to see the pilot program expanded through the end of 2024. There seems to be a lot of momentum backing the idea. Chi spoke to Tuoi Tre, a local newspaper, confirming that he has placed the request with the Politburo in the country, which is the one that can allow the program to continue. Chi stated his arguments for why this should be done:

"The COVID-19 pandemic over the last two years has had a great impact on Vietnam’s production, hospitality and tourism, particularly the casino business."

But to better understand whether this measure is actually necessary, it’s important to take a look at the numbers. Out of the 240,560 customers Phu Quoc attracted between 2019 and 2021, more than 65% were actually Vietnamese. This means that inbound casino traffic is largely driven by local gamblers. Locals have spent an estimated $5.85 million to enter the casino.

Business grew despite the pandemic at a rate of 9.5%. Phu Quoc is also important employer in the province as it has helped create 2,000 jobs so far and is said to have paid $71.7 million to the state in the form of tax, a tremendous amount. Meanwhile, the country is looking to expand support for gambling.

Image credit: Unsplash.com