Ban follows crime report
East Timor has banned all online gambling operations, only a fortnight after the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) issued a warning that its Special Administrative Region (SAR) had become a “scam center hotspot.”
threats to its national security, social order, economic standing, and reputation
The SAR’s government announced the license bans on Wednesday following a Council of Ministers resolution. East Timor cited threats to its national security, social order, economic standing, and reputation on the world stage as the reason for the ban.
Besides scrapping existing licenses, East Timor has stopped processing new ones.
Crime comes fast to Oecusse
The crackdown follows September 11 UNODC reports of an increasing presence of transnational organized crime networks and Chinese triads in the East Timor SAR of Oecusse Ambeno.
East Timor, formally known as Timor-Leste, only rolled out its digital free trade zone in Oecusse in December, but a law enforcement raid in August revealed that crime was thriving.
linked to entities associated with “convicted cybercriminals” and “offshore gambling operators”
East Timor had pivoted to establishing itself as Southeast Asia’s newest hub for licensed online gaming and granted its first license in 2025 to a subsidiary of global operator GDLotto. The 11 arrests made earlier this month for illegal gambling and computer fraud, however, confirms the UN’s suspicions that Oecusse criminal activity is linked to entities associated with “convicted cybercriminals” and “offshore gambling operators.”
Macau Business cited experts claiming the spread of scam centers throughout Southeast Asia and into East Timor was a sign of the fraud industry’s growth.
Insiders also pointed to parallels with Myanmar, Cambodia, and the Philippines, where organized crime gangs infiltrated those countries’ SAR’s via foreign investment scams.
Other concerns
While the ban remains in effect, it slightly softens concerns about East Timor’s accession to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in October. Multiple bodies fear ASEAN membership may invite increased cross-border crime to East Timor.
The UNODC has also reported that an individual in the East Timor government co-owns a hotel that “appears to host companies” linked to crime.
