Broadly, can you begin with a brief overview of where Asia finds itself at this moment in time?

I focus mainly on the Philippines and have done over the last four years – although I’ve spent time working in Thailand, Vietnam and Japan as well. However, the Philippines is my core market, and I think it’s a hugely exciting one. It’s the only regulated market in Asia right now, and it probably will be for a while. They will all have to come around eventually – they’d be crazy not to. But right now, it’s all tied up in politics, religion and cultural sensitivities, which is what’s holding things back. 

Nevertheless, fundamentally these nations do need to come around and regulate at some point in the near future, because, in the meantime, markets like Thailand and Vietnam are simply booming – the Vietnamese market, especially, is absolutely on fire. Japan, on the other hand, has gone in the opposite direction. They’ve really clamped down and become very tough, which is cooling things down.

Indeed, Japan used to be a highly lucrative market for a lot of operators. People were making serious money there. But they’ve more recently tightened everything, and now it’s a very difficult place to operate in. That being said, one thing about this industry is that it’s incredibly adaptable. People always find ways of working around the system, so to speak. It is what the industry does best.

Do you think infrastructure or technological development plays a role in slowing down regulation in Southeast Asia? Or is it more about fragmentation and political differences?

I think infrastructure plays a role, but it’s probably secondary to political and regulatory fragmentation. If you look at the Philippines, where things are regulated, you can see how specific policy decisions impact the market quite directly. For example, when they removed integration with e-wallets, that had a huge impact. Before that, the experience was completely frictionless. People were already using these wallets every day, and they could just click a few buttons and start playing instantly.

That kind of convenience drove massive player volumes. Companies were getting millions of users a month with relatively little effort. However, once that integration was removed, the market took a hit. Revenues dropped, player numbers dropped – it had a palpable effect. However, the market is recovering. Core players are still there. They didn’t disappear – they just adapted.

There were also restrictions introduced on advertising, particularly out-of-home advertising. At one point, you couldn’t drive down a highway without seeing gaming advertisements everywhere. That triggered a political response. Lawmakers felt it had gone too far, especially given the country’s religious backdrop, and they pulled that back. Again, the market adjusted. But even with these challenges, the Philippines still offers better player protection and more developed responsible gambling frameworks than most other countries in the region. 

Which geographical markets and wagering verticals are the ones that fly under the radar in Asia? 

For me, Indonesia is very interesting. It’s a huge market with a massive population – but the Government is actively trying to shut gambling down. They have got thousands of people working to block sites, monitor activity and enforce restrictions. They’re putting serious effort into it. However, the demand is still there and it’s not going away. The challenge around operating in that environment is that it often requires connections – knowing the right people, navigating informal systems. That’s not exactly something you can easily present to investors as a stable, scalable business model. 

With regard to dominant verticals, it all varies enormously. I wrote an article for this magazine’s predecessor some time ago entitled: ‘There is no such thing as Asia,” because every market is so different.

China, for example, is huge for sports betting. One of the biggest in the world. But across Southeast Asia – Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia – slots dominate. Even when you bring in sports bettors, a lot of them end up playing slots as well. Globally, the industry has shifted quite a bit over the past decade. It used to be that sports betting made up about half the market, with casino making up maybe a quarter.

Now it’s flipped. Casino – especially slots – is the primary revenue driver. Sports betting is still important, but it’s often more of an acquisition tool. Within casino, slots dominate. Table games like baccarat still play a role, especially for higher-value players, but they come with more risk for operators due to high return-to-player rates. Naturally, all of this makes it rather difficult to predict exactly where the market will go. However, I’m certain that – whatever direction it does take – it won’t be boring.

Do you think other countries in the region will follow the Philippines in regulating online gambling in the next few years?

They’d be insane not to, frankly – but again, there are barriers. Thailand is strongly opposed. Vietnam is still figuring things out within its own political system. There are other emerging markets such as Cambodia or Bangladesh – but they are developing in different ways, and not necessarily through structured regulation. 

India is another interesting case. They introduced tax changes that caused a lot of concern in the industry, and things have gone a bit quieter since then.

Cricket betting is obviously dominant there but, like Southeast Asia, India isn’t a single unified market. Each state is different – different regulations, languages and cultures. What this means is you really have to approach it on a state-by-state basis. Localization is key.

And, finally, what do you think is Asia’s biggest strength in online gaming?

I think it comes down to culture. Gambling is deeply ingrained across much of the region. There’s a real appetite for it. People will bet on anything – sports, games and even completely random outcomes, such as the weather or the traffic. That demand is a huge strength.

In the Philippines, for example, sports betting is actually a relatively small segment – accounting maybe for around 15% of players. 

Most people engage with both sports and casino, with slots being particularly dominant. Cultural preferences vary a lot, too. Take football, for example. In the Philippines, there’s relatively little interest. During the World Cup, you wouldn’t necessarily even know it was happening unless you went looking for it.

Comparing that to somewhere like Bangkok, where the World Cup is everywhere – bars, promotions, events, there’s no getting away from it. That diversity across markets is massive, and it presents both a challenge and an opportunity. Will countries choose to regulate going forward? Right now, it is anyone’s guess.