Nine casinos contribute 9 trillion VND to the state budget.

Providing employment for nearly 10,000 workers.

On the morning of March 18, Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc answered questions at the 31st session of the National Assembly Standing Committee.

National Assembly Deputy Nguyen Duy Minh (Da Nang delegation) asked the Minister: "Could you tell us how many casino businesses are currently operating nationwide? What is the current business situation of these companies? Do the businesses operating casinos contribute significantly to the local economy , especially in attracting tourists to stay and spend in the locality?"

Furthermore, currently only the Phu Quoc casino, located on Hon Tre Casino, is being piloted for Vietnamese citizens. How does the Minister assess the results of this pilot program, and will there be consideration of expanding the pilot program to allow Vietnamese citizens to gamble in casinos in the future?

Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc.

In response to this question, the Minister of Finance stated that there are currently 9 casinos nationwide. Of these, 3 are large casinos located in Phu Quoc, Ho Tram, and Nam Hoi An, while the remaining 6 are smaller, mainly in Hai Phong , Quang Ninh, and Lao Cai.

According to the government's decision approving the investment plan, two casinos are under construction in Khanh Hoa and Thua Thien Hue provinces, while another casino is awaiting approval in Van Don.

Regarding the question of how much casinos contribute to the budget, Mr. Phớc stated: "From 2017 to 2023, casinos contributed approximately 9,000 billion VND to the budget and provided employment for nearly 10,000 people."

In Phu Quoc, in the early years, 69% of visitors were Vietnamese, but by 2023, that number had dropped to 39%. This means the number of Vietnamese visitors is gradually decreasing while the number of foreigners is steadily increasing.

Betting on football, horse racing, and dog racing has not yet been implemented.

During the questioning session, National Assembly Deputy Nguyen Thi Hue (from Bac Kan province) stated that, according to a report from the Ministry of Finance, in recent times, many places have taken advantage of the business of electronic games with prizes and betting with prizes to organize illegal gambling or betting, causing difficulties for the management work of State agencies.

The delegate asked Minister Ho Duc Phoc to explain the changes in the legal framework for the business of electronic games with prizes and betting with prizes over the past period. Why has the Ministry of Finance not yet licensed any betting businesses? Furthermore, the delegate requested the Minister to explain the solutions for effective management in this field.

National Assembly Deputy Nguyen Thi Hue raises questions.

Responding to questions about gambling and electronic games, Minister Ho Duc Phoc stated that currently, there are 93 electronic games located in 5-star hotels in Vietnam. However, the conditions for being allowed to operate there are that the business must have a capital of 500 billion VND or more, a system of electronic equipment, and a professional team for supervision.

These games are only for foreigners. This system has supported 5-star hotels, helping them achieve business results and solve labor issues.

Regarding betting, Mr. Phớc stated that there are currently types of betting available for football, horse racing, and dog racing; however, these have not yet been implemented. When implementing football betting, the Ministry is developing regulations for organizing bidding, but is encountering difficulties with the Bidding Law.

"Recently, when amending the Law on Bidding, we included regulations on this issue. We need to continue perfecting the legal framework to implement football betting," Mr. Phớc said.

As for horse racing and dog racing, regulations already stipulate that investors must build standardized racetracks with professional equipment and personnel to ensure successful implementation.

"This is a new model, and the Ministry is actively researching and implementing it, while also preventing risks through this method," Mr. Phuoc said.

The Minister of Finance stated that, for these types of investment projects, the Ministry of Planning and Investment will submit the proposal to the Government for the Prime Minister to issue the investment policy. However, the Ministry of Finance is responsible for completing the infrastructure to meet the licensing requirements for betting. The Ministry will actively work to resolve this issue .

Source: https://www.nguoiduatin.vn/9-casino-dong-gop-ngan-sach-9-000-ty-dong-a654640.html