China

The potential for billions of dollars in profits makes online gambling in China a hot topic.

Online Gambling in China is a pastime enjoyed by millions of citizens, even though it is not completely legal therein. The only legal forms of gambling in the People's Republic of China are two state run lotteries, but that does not stop players from registering, playing and winning at many of the offshore sites that accept Chinese players.

Online Gambling is a revenue maker, but the Chinese government has been slow to address the addition of new legislation that would potentially regulate online gambling. While online gambling in Macau and in Hong Kong are legal, these two regions are defined as "Special Administrative Regions," just like Las Vegas is to the US.

The Chinese government does not currently grant licenses to online casino operators in China, and players are not technically supposed to play at off-shore sites. That has not stopped anyone and revenue from online gambling in China is over double the revenue from the state-run lotteries combined.

There could be a bright future for Chinese online gambling, as the topic has been discussed for a number of years. Casino players from China could very well be playing at a state-run online casino in the future, but until then, they can get away with playing at one of the many online casinos accepting Chinese players.