Hong Kong leader defends halt on basketball betting legalization

‘All risks must be controlled,’ John Lee says as he defends basketball betting U-turn

Hong Kong’s leader has defended the government’s decision to put the legalisation of basketball betting on hold, stressing the policy was never intended to encourage gambling and that all risks must be controlled before any further steps are taken. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu made the remarks on Tuesday after the government’s surprising U-turn last week to halt the authorisation of basketball betting, citing the rapid growth of prediction markets – cryptocurrency-based platforms that all...

By Matthew Cheng