Singapore, Thai lotteries increasingly popular in Arakan State

By Admin 21 Oct 2023

DMG Newsroom
21 October 2023, Sittwe
 
Sales for the Aung Bar Lay state lottery have dropped across Myanmar since the coup, but sales of Thai and Singaporean lottery tickets have risen in Arakan State, according to lottery ticket vendors.
 
“Few people bought Singapore lottery tickets in the past, but the demand has increased sharply now,” said a lottery ticket vendor in Sittwe.
 
The Singapore lottery is drawn once a month, with tickets selling for 12,000 kyats. Vendors declined to give details on the sales volume and related specifics.
 
The Thai lottery is drawn twice a month, and is also in high demand in Arakan State.
 
“Previously, a Thai lottery ticket was sold for only 9,000 kyats. But the price has gone up to over 10,000 kyats now,” said a Thai lottery vendor in Sittwe. “But it does not affect the demand. In fact, demand has even increased. Few people buy Myanmar lottery tickets these days.”
 
Thai and Singaporean lottery tickets are popular in part because they are sold online, and are easy to buy.
 
The highest prize in Singapore Sweep is 5 million Singapore dollars, equivalent to more than 7.5 billion kyats in Myanmar currency. The highest prize in the Thai lottery is 6 million baht, equivalent to about 344 million kyats.
 
The decline in sales of Aung Bar Lay lottery is largely attributed to a shrinking of the lottery winnings on offer. The highest prize now is only 500 million kyats, down from 1.5 billion kyats before the coup.
 
Ponnagyun resident Ko Aung Hsu, who regularly buys lottery tickets from Thailand and Singapore, said: “As more people sell online, more people buy lottery tickets from foreign countries. The big jackpots are also a reason.”
 
The selling of lottery tickets from foreign countries is not officially permitted in Myanmar.
 
Sales for the Aung Bar Lay lottery have dropped by some 70 percent in Arakan State since the Myanmar military seized power in February 2021.