Call to check tech trends when drafting policies after basketball betting U-turn

Hong Kong authorities should consider the impact of technological developments when drafting policies, observers have said, noting the government’s decision to halt plans for basketball betting reflected a lack of thorough discussion. Their remarks on Tuesday followed the government announcing the suspension over concerns about new “prediction market” gambling while warning that it was illegal for Hongkongers to bet on sports events on such trading platforms. An amendment bill to the Betting Duty Ordinance was passed in September to empower the secretary for home and youth affairs to license a basketball betting operator in the city, aiming to tackle illegal…