China firm on the ban on online lotteries

Ministry of Finance of China has issued a rule update, firmly declaring that all unauthorised lottery sales are illegal, starting from October 1.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs and the General Administration of Sport also endorsed the rule.

The amendment clearly states that “online sales of welfare lottery tickets and sports lottery tickets without authorisation” are illegal. The online segment has been banned ever since 2015, when the authorities determined it was forbidden to sale tickets for any lottery games as they highlighted the need to streamline government oversight and to curb fraud by unlicensed sellers.

The government also voiced its concerns over apps that are disguised behind different topics but still sell lottery tickets for games like “Hong Kong Mark Six” illegally.

Back on August 20, Apple stated that it had been attempting to remove said apps from its store and prevent new ones from being added but it has no influence over those users that have already downloaded them.