The British Overseas Territory of Bermuda is looking at becoming the next jurisdiction to license and regulate online gambling.
The government is spending $300,000 on a study from Innovation Group that will explore the feasibility of licensing online companies as well as legalizing land-based casinos and a national lottery.
Renee Web, former tourism minister, said he fully supports the new approach, “firstly, because it already exists through bingo, horseracing, football pools and Crown and Anchor. So you are not legalizing gambling but extending what already exists island-wide. I supported a national lottery where the benefits go to education, the arts and other national causes similar to the British lottery.”
Premier Emil Brown said the nation has limited options for generating additional revenue.
“Bermuda has a history of having had two significant economic bases,” Brown told the BBC World Service. “One is tourism and the other one is international business. We donÆt export anything; we import 90 percent of what we consume and so we havenÆt been able to come up with another pillar for our economy, although we are exploring new revenue streams like gaming.”
He also said that without a concentrated effort on economic development, BermudaÆs drug smuggling will continue to grow.
Finance Minister Bob Richards isnÆt sure that making the country a base for online operators is a sound move. He is concerned it could anger the United States.
Richards says he is concerned that Bermuda will be seen as a source of money laundering.
