Gambling, lottery and card games have always been popular among Indian people but in the recent years, online gambling and sports betting has been picking up. Even as the Indian government stepped up its efforts to block dealing in cryptocurrencies in India, the trend has shifted to online gambling, especially among younger audience. There are many legal ways to place online bets in India while the law is still ambiguous about gambling in India. Many people have also raised the issue and suggested that the government should consider legalizing betting and casinos in India as this will be a major revenue stream for local governments.

In India, states such as Sikkim and Goa have legalized lotteries and casinos. Even the popular lottery PlayWin was registered and operated by a company listed with Sikkim state authorities. Betting on horse racing is legal in Maharashtra and in the past, it was also legal in West Bengal. Online betting platforms are legal in India as they are operated by offshore companies. There are many platforms that offer detailed reviews about options available for legal online betting in India and CasinoCaptain is one such platform that offers legal sports betting and iGaming options for bettors.

Some people even believe that Indians started betting more while they were under rule of the British as the English people are well known for betting on almost anything. Even in some popular Bollywood movies, we have seen some characters betting big money on the chance of rain on a specific day. Certainly, the trend of betting, sports betting, horse racing and online betting has been on a rise among Indians and some of that popularity is due to depiction of gambling in Indian movies.

As the markets are not regulated, it is not clear how much revenue is generated by betting, gambling and sports betting in India. Some people estimate annual revenue from overall betting in India at US$ 60 billion while and this figure still doesn’t account for spot-betting on cricket matches. In India, betting on sports events is very popular and majority of this local spot-betting is conducted illegally. These networks are operated under illegal channels and dealing is in cash only. Indian government has been urged by civil society and NGOs to legalize betting on sports event as betting on cricket matches in extremely popular in India. However, as this hasn’t been legalized by the government, the government is losing massive revenue from this segment. Once sports betting wins approval from the government, it will be safe for bettors and operators while the local governments will generate decent revenue.

Indians believe in luck and they are ready to take chances. That is clearly evident from the number of people who trade in stock markets, derivatives, commodity trading and currency markets on a daily basis. The revenue from stock market trading has been steadily rising as younger generation is technology-oriented and they have access to research tools. When one has the option to make informed decisions and the platforms are safe, it is always fun and exciting to check out the options and luck with trading, games and betting.