China’s lottery sales see biggest year ever as games become ‘more fun’
Younger generation seen as especially keen on ‘experience economy’, with the thrill of the game overshadowing the slim odds of winning big
China’s total lottery sales surpassed 600 billion yuan (US$82 billion) last year for the first time in its 40-year history, according to fresh figures from the Ministry of Finance.
Total sales for 2024 hit a record high of 623.5 billion yuan, marking year-on-year growth of 7.6 per cent. The single-digit growth continued the upward momentum over the past three years that has provided a high comparison base.
Guizhou province, for example, saw the nation’s largest-ever lottery payout last February, when a 28-year-old man won 680 million yuan. In comparison, Hong Kong’s biggest lottery jackpot – HK$188 million (US$24.14 million) – was won during the recent Lunar New Year holiday.
State media reports that sales of lottery tickets help support the nation’s welfare system and its sports industry, and under lottery-management rules, funds are used for administrative expenses, public-welfare-related projects, and to pay for prizes.
“People would like to try their luck,” said Bob Chen, director at Shenzhen-based venture capital firm Mangrove Capital. “But another reason might be that the lottery is becoming more fun, with far more diverse ways of playing than before.”
With the lottery industry known for seeing growth in the face of an adverse economic environment, Chen added that people see the lottery as a “fun game”, and therefore lottery stands “are always among the most popular attractions in shopping malls”.