At the Thailand Entertainment Complex Roundtable (TECR) held last week, a controversial regulation sparked intense debate: local residents must have a bank deposit of $1.5 million to enter casinos. This clause is seen by industry insiders as a "significant barrier" that could stifle foreign investment intentions.
Opposition People's Party MP Parit Wacharasindhu pointed out that this regulation is still included in the draft of the complex bill submitted to the Senate, showing that the government either has not adopted the opinions of the industry or intentionally ignores the real issues.
Kevin Clayton, the head of Galaxy Entertainment Group Thailand, bluntly stated that excluding locals from casinos would directly impact investment scale. "This is equivalent to completely abandoning the local market, a serious market barrier," he said. He mentioned that casinos in South Korea are only open to foreigners, which has led to their integrated project investments being far below international standards.
According to Thailand's official plans, the minimum investment threshold for entertainment complexes is set at 100 billion Thai Baht (about $3 billion), much higher than the current cost of the largest resort in South Korea. Clayton emphasized that if the same restrictions apply to local residents, investment intentions will be suppressed, and Thailand might miss the opportunity to become a regional entertainment and tourism hub.
He added that the real meaning of promoting legalization is to shift Thais who are active in illegal gambling dens to compliant channels. "This is the real market foundation," he said.
Clayton also cited the success of Singapore, explaining that relaxing participation restrictions for locals and attracting high investments are key to enhancing national competitiveness. For example, the integrated resorts in Singapore have increased the average stay duration of visitors from one night to 3.5 days, boosting tourism and the city's economy comprehensively.
"Thailand welcomed 36 million visitors last year. If each visitor stays an extra day, the economic boost would be significant," he pointed out, "Even if only a portion of the visitors experience the casinos and their facilities, it would be enough to generate a chain effect, stimulating urban infrastructure, employment, and consumption."
The draft is still in the legislative process, and how to balance attracting investment and regulation is becoming a key issue in the legalization process of casinos in Thailand.
