Australian Gamblers Will Potentially Gain Access to Massive Hong Kong Betting Pools

Punters in Australia will have the chance to participate in the multimillion-dollar Hong Kong racing pools, after the first national tote pool begins operation by the end of 2015.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club has a goal to have one pari-mutuel pool and will host Tabcorp and TattsBet punters’ win, place, quinella, duet and trifecta bets from the second part of 2015, which will be subject to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission sanction.

Bill Nader, HKJC executive director of racing, commented on the great gambling news: “We have the biggest pools in the world and we think we have the best racing. We see a benefit to have all international operators betting into our pools because of their size. The technology is available to do it, so want to do it now.”

Moreover: “It doesn’t make sense to have a number of little pools around the world, which don’t give punters the confidence to bet. This is the way of the future.”

The success in Hong Kong

Bettors in Australia will have the chance to participate in massive Hong Kong racing pools

• Hong Kong Jockey Club claims to have the biggest pools in the world

• All bets placed on Hong Kong racing by a tote in Australia, would be only taxed at home

• There will be a tax waiver for international bets in Hong Kong

When it comes to taxation, all bets, which are placed on Hong Kong racing by a tote in Australia, would be only taxed at home and there will be a special tax waiver for international bets in Hong Kong. Therefore, the benefit of larger turnover would later on be returned to the Australian racing industry.

In the last 10 years, the Australian pari-mutuel betting has been seriously declining, which is exactly the opposite to what is happening in Hong Kong, where betting has grown from HKD 60 billion in 2006 to HKD 102 billion this year.

This deal would most certainly be a huge success for tote pools in Australia, which have a turn over of more than $100 million on racing in Hong Kong.

It could also be a predecessor to a national tote for Australian racing, but still specialists predict that it would take at least another five years for this to happen as an agreement between all states have to be reached.

Tabcorp plans for the future

Tabcorp, which follows all Australian gambling laws is the leader in international betting in the country, therefore it is supporting the deal 100%. It has the required systems to work with any country abroad and is also aiming at acquiring the necessary approval to be able to bet and receive bets from around the world.

Brendan Parnell, Tabcorp’s COO for media and international product, commented: “We want to give our customers the best possible product and in pari-mutuel betting that means bigger pools for stability and confidence.”

Moreover: “Betting into international pools has shown immediate growth when we have done it in Singapore and New Zealand, and we would expect the same with Hong Kong.”

He added: “While we would be ‘guesting’ into the Hong Kong pools, there is further benefit to being the host as we are with Singapore and New Zealand in our SuperTAB pool to pool sizes. International betting is key to growing our business and increasing returns to the racing industry, which at our core.”

Nader also commented that Hong Kong would be willing to bet into Australian pools in the future years: “This is the first step in a partnership and we would like to eventually bet into Australian pools on your racing.”

When all the pools for standard bet types are in place, Tabcorp plans to introduce some exotic bets, which are only available in Hong Kong like the triple trio, where punters have to select the first three homes in three consecutive races.