Cambodia’s casino industry is approaching a decisive moment.
As of June 2026, 124 casinos were operating legally in the country, according to figures attributed to the Commercial Gambling Management Commission of Cambodia — គណៈកម្មការគ្រប់គ្រងល្បែងពាណិជ្ជកម្មកម្ពុជា, or CGMC.
Another 75 properties were no longer operating normally:
19 had paused operations because of economic difficulties.
19 had their licences revoked.
33 had their licences suspended.
Four held licences that had expired.
More importantly, the regulator said that all currently valid casino licences are due to expire on 31 December 2026.
That does not mean Cambodia’s casinos will automatically close on New Year’s Eve. It does mean the country is approaching a sector-wide licensing test that could determine which operators remain in the market during 2027.
From rapid expansion to regulatory consolidation
For years, Cambodia’s casino industry expanded around border towns and tourism centres such as Bavet, Poipet and Sihanoukville.
Cambodian citizens are legally prohibited from gambling inside casinos, so the industry was designed primarily for foreign customers. Properties near Thailand and Vietnam targeted visitors crossing the border, while Sihanoukville developed a large casino economy connected to Chinese tourism, property investment and online businesses.
Regulation began changing substantially after Cambodia adopted its Law on the Management of Commercial Gambling in 2020 and established the CGMC.
The new framework introduced a more formal licensing system, stronger financial controls and closer coordination with the Cambodia Financial Intelligence Unit. According to Cambodia’s latest national money-laundering risk assessment, regulators have also declined to issue junket licences, forcing casinos to end traditional third-party junket relationships and bring VIP operations in-house.
The result is a market moving away from rapid, loosely supervised expansion and towards fewer operators facing greater scrutiny.
Suspended does not necessarily mean criminal
The status figures require careful interpretation.
The 75 casinos outside normal operation were not all closed for the same reason. Some paused because of difficult business conditions. Others had expired licences or faced administrative suspension.
They should not all be described as scam compounds or criminal operations.
However, Cambodia has separately revoked casino licences after authorities linked particular properties to online-scam activity. One such case involved a casino and hotel in Sihanoukville whose licence was withdrawn following an enforcement operation related to alleged technology-enabled fraud.
This distinction matters. Cambodia’s casino contraction reflects several overlapping pressures: weak properties, post-pandemic disruption, regulatory non-compliance and the government’s campaign against online scams.
Why 31 December matters
The common expiry date creates a rare opportunity for Cambodia to review a large part of the industry at once.
The central question is not simply how many licences will be renewed. It is what operators may be required to demonstrate before continuing.
Potential areas of scrutiny include ownership, source of funds, financial reporting, anti-money-laundering controls, relationships with online businesses and the separation of licensed casino activity from illegal digital operations.
The government has already shown that a casino licence will not protect a property when authorities identify serious violations. The end-of-year deadline could therefore become a practical dividing line between operators capable of satisfying the newer regulatory framework and those unable to do so.
But the eventual outcome remains unknown. The regulator has not publicly confirmed that a fixed number of casinos will be removed, nor that every currently operating property will receive a new licence.
A smaller but more controlled market?
Cambodia reportedly collected more than US$72 million in public revenue from its casino sector during 2025. The industry therefore remains economically important, particularly in border regions and cities where casinos support hotels, restaurants, transport and property development.
Closing too many properties could affect employment and local economies. Renewing licences without meaningful controls, however, would weaken the government’s effort to separate legal gaming from fraud, money laundering and unlicensed online activity.
The most important number will not be the 124 casinos operating today.
It will be how many are still authorised to operate after 31 December—and what Cambodia demands from them in return.
East Asia Reports
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Author — Adrià Mas Rodríguez