Cambodia is one of the most popular destinations for casino gaming in Asia. Because of this, casinos in Cambodia have been growing and playing a bigger part in contributing to the economy.
Every year, tens of thousands of foreigners, mostly from China, Vietnam, and Thailand, visited the 100+ casinos in Cambodia (at its peak). In 2019 Cambodia hosted the most casinos in Southeast Asia, followed by Myanmar, Laos, and the Philippines.
Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Myanmar all have laws banning their citizens from gambling. Although this is also true in the Kingdom, which also has anti-gaming laws on the books, Cambodia has become a regional hub for betting.
The Asia Pacific was the largest region in the global gambling market, accounting for 38% of the market in 2020 which was valued at USD $465.76 billion in 2020.
Gaming establishments contribute hundreds of millions of dollars to the Kingdom’s economy every year through employment, attracting tourists and tax revenues etc. However, they have also been blamed for an array of social problems.
Casinos in Cambodia saw a huge jump in 2018
Over the course of 2018, the government granted 52 gaming licences to casinos in Cambodia. This brought the total up to 150 casinos in Cambodia.
This figure represented a 53% increase from 2017 when the Kingdom only had 98 casinos. Increasing demand, especially from record numbers of Chinese tourists, was cited as a reason for the growth.
More than 1.6 million Chinese tourists visited Cambodia in 2018, accounting for 26% of all foreign arrivals to the Kingdom.
Nearly 90 of the 150 casinos in Cambodia at the time were located in coastal Sihanoukville. Poipet on the Thai border, and Bavet near Vietnam each host more than 10 gaming venues.
With 1,658 rooms and suites across its two properties, NagaWorld in Phnom Penh is the largest casino in Cambodia. NagaWorld is a subsidiary of NagaCorp, which was given exclusive rights to operate the only casino within 200 km of Phnom Penh. That deal was initially valid until 2035 and was then extended with the Cambodian government by 10 years until 2045.
NagaWorld also is developing a third site close to its exiting property- Naga 3 is planned – the company expects to expand the resort’s total room capacity to about 5,000 rooms by 2025.
You can search for luxurious villas for rent near NagaWorld here.
Other notable casinos in Cambodia include Holiday Palace Casino & Resort, Poipet Resort Casino, Star Vegas Casino (Poipet), Lucky Ruby Border Casino, Las Vegas Sun Casino, Le Macau Casino & Hotel (Bavet), Fortuna Hotel & Casino, Queenco Hotel & Casino, Golden Sand Hotel & Casino (Sihanoukville), Dara Sakor Seashore Resort Casino (Koh Kong), and Thansur Sokha Hotel (Kampot).
Scroll down to view a map we made of all the prominent casinos in Cambodia!
Is gambling legal in Cambodia?
Save for a few exceptions, gambling is illegal in Cambodia under the 1996 Law on the Suppression of Gambling. However, the ban only extends to Cambodian citizens.
Locals are allowed to buy into five privately operated national lotteries. Up until 2009, Cambodians were allowed to use slot machines. This practice was then prohibited by the government and gambling-related violence was cited as a cause.
The enforcement of the gambling ban is somewhat spotty. Yet, by the letter of the law, violation of the ban can lead to a fine or even jail time.
Is Cambodia the next Macau?
Supporters of Cambodian casinos often say that the increased tax revenues more than make up for any negative impacts. There are claims that gaming taxes were instrumental in the economic prosperity of both Singapore and Macau.
Or Saroeun, Preah Sihanouk provincial hall spokesperson, told the local media that more casinos in Cambodia will be good for the economy.
He said at the time that there will a bigger demand for products and services that vendors, businessmen, and others will be happy to meet. “It also means more money for the government’s coffers,” he stressed.
The annual licence fee for Cambodian casino operators is pegged at $40,000. Casinos have contributed more than $50 million annually in tax revenues - in 2020, tax collections from casinos dropped to $40 million, less than 50 per cent compared to collections of $85 million in 2019.
Some figures say that gambling is indirectly responsible for contributing more than $2 billion to Cambodia’s economy.
Below are the annual tax collections in Cambodia from the casino industry:
- 2011: $20 million in tax revenue was generated from the casinos in Cambodia.
- 2014: $25 million in revenue tax collections.
- 2015: $29 million in revenue tax collections (However it is believed that Casinos in Cambodia generated $2 billion in income for casino owners, by 2015.)
- 2018: $46 million in revenue tax collections.
- 2019: $85 million in revenue tax collections.
- 2020: $40 million in revenue tax collections.
Proponents say that Cambodian casinos bring more employment opportunities and increase the value of land for sale in Cambodia.
Popular casinos in Cambodia
Nagaworld, Phnom Penh
Photo from Nikkei Asia.
Nagaworld is the largest casino in Cambodia and the only one in Phnom Penh. It serves as a landmark for many residents of the city and also provides many entertainment and food and beverage options for local residents and international visitors.
Apart from its expansive casino floors, Nagaworld also provides a hotel, events centres, and a commercial area across the two existing properties which are also connected by an underground duty-free shopping area.
The addition of Naga 3 is expected to expand the resort’s total room capacity to about 5,000 rooms by 2025.
Galaxy Casino, Poipet
Photo from Poipet Guide.
Galaxy Casino is a relatively new hotel-casino in Krong Poipet having only opened in mid-2019. It's popular among Thai border crossers.
Star Casino, Poipet
Photo from RGB Games.
DNA Star Vegas casino is one of the oldest standing hotel-casinos in Poipet and is popular among Thai and Chinese gamblers in the city.
Social impact concerns of Cambodian casinos
The mere mention of casinos often generates controversy. Countries such as Pakistan, China, Mexico, Brazil, Thailand, and Ethiopia don’t have a single casino within their borders.
In countries where they are present, casinos are often heavily regulated.
Many medical bodies across the world have recognised the problem of compulsive gambling.
There have been reports of both foreigners and locals in the Kingdom who have resorted to crime because of their addiction to gambling.
Additionally, some allegations claim that certain casinos in Cambodia are being used for money laundering. The Basel Anti-Money Laundering Index ranked Cambodia among the countries in the world most vulnerable to money laundering.
However, the Cambodian government’s decision to ban all types of online gambling in the Kingdom, also aimed at tackling money laundering and potential terrorism financing, saw a number of operations cease.
The Cambodian government’s decision to ban online gambling, which took effect on 1st January 2020, has slowed the growth of the rapid rise of casinos especially in the coastal city of Sihanoukville.
What are Sihanoukville casinos like?
Many of Cambodia's casinos are in Sihanoukville and expanding into Dara Sakor. These mainly cater to Chinese patrons.
Here are some quick facts about Sihanoukville casinos:
- You can find slot machines for anywhere from a few cents to $5 per game.
- Slot machines are quite popular and usually only accept US currency.
- Many are starting to accept the Chinese Yuan and most have currency exchanges onsite.
- Table games include baccarat, roulette, and blackjack.
- Most casinos have Chinese-speaking staff and service Chinese food.
- Many casinos offer free rooms for between $300 and $800 buy-ins.
Looking for condos to rent in Sihanoukville? Use our search tool here.
Map of all major Cambodia casinos
Online casinos in Cambodia
While landed casinos definitely made visiting Cambodia more intriguing, the country's online casino industry was growing fast behind the scenes. The primary places online casino operators established their operations were in Sihanoukville, Krong Poi Pet, and Krong Bavet.
The most prominent of these locations was Sihanoukville as the burgeoning port city was already home to big casinos and a host of large commercial property developments that had the capacity for modern conveniences such as large office spaces, high-bandwidth internet, and centralized airconditioning.
It was noted by international news outlets that Sihanoukville owed its fast expansion not just to landed casinos, but online casinos as well. A large portion of their workforce employed Chinese workers as a majority of these online casinos catering to online casino players in mainland China. The arrival of this large workforce was felt the most in Sihanoukville's property market as rental prices skyrocketed in a matter of months.
Cambodia banned online casinos
Over the past decade, Cambodia was trying to reform laws governing gambling and related activities. In 2014, legislation was proposed that would overhaul the current regulations. The proposal was meant to generate more state revenue while also attracting more visitors from around the globe. This would effectively double the tax rate up to 5%.
Proponents of the measure saw their effort come to fruition when, in 2019, the Cambodian government announced that it would no longer be renewing online gambling permits for 2020. Operators who still had their licenses that year will be given till the end of their license to operate within the Kingdom. It's important to note that the decree only covered online casinos operators; landed casinos, with proper permits, were still allowed to operate.
The exodus of many expatriate workers, largely Chinese, was estimated to be in the hundreds of thousands.
The immigration office estimated that over 400,000 Chinese nationals left Cambodia by January 2020 - the time when law enforcers cracked down on illegal operations.
Casinos Affected by COVID-19
During the COVID-19 global pandemic, Cambodian casinos were forced to close for a period from April-July 2020 - many re-opened but were forced shut again in periods of 2021 which has led to mass layoffs and some casinos have closed - although the full extent of the impact is yet to be known.
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