Bangladesh is preparing one of the most significant regulatory overhauls in its modern gambling history after confirming plans to replace the Public Gambling Act of 1867, a British colonial-era law that has regulated and prohibited gambling activities in the country for more than 159 years. The central issue is that the government wants to replace legislation originally designed for 19th-century betting houses with a modern legal framework focused on online gambling, digital payments, advertising, mobile apps and cross-border betting platforms.
The announcement was made on 24 May 2026 in Dhaka by Home Affairs Minister Salahuddin Ahmed during a meeting with the Bangladesh Secretariat Reporters Forum. Ahmed confirmed that the draft legislation is already in its final stage and will be submitted to Parliament during the next legislative session.
Bangladesh currently operates under the Public Gambling Act, 1867, a law introduced during British colonial rule that prohibits gambling houses and traditional betting activities but does not address:
online gambling, mobile apps, digital advertising, affiliate networks, electronic payments, fintech systems or cross-border wagering platforms.
The new proposal does not aim to legalize casinos or create a regulated European-style gambling market. Instead, the government intends to strengthen prohibition measures and modernize enforcement tools against the rapid growth of informal online betting. Salahuddin Ahmed stated that online gambling is increasingly affecting young people and social stability, arguing that Bangladesh now requires a “modern and timely” legal framework.
Mostaqur Rahman
Enforcement responsibilities will remain distributed among the Ministry of Home Affairs, police authorities, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) and the country’s financial system regulators. The BTRC, led in 2026 by Major General (Retd.) Md Emdad Ul Bari, has already blocked hundreds of gambling websites and coordinated actions with mobile operators, financial intelligence agencies and banks. Bangladesh Bank, headed since February 2026 by governor Mostaqur Rahman, is also participating in the monitoring of gambling-related financial flows.
The figures illustrate the pressure facing authorities. During 2025, government agencies launched investigations against more than 1,100 agents linked to online betting; BTRC blocked at least 331 gambling websites and requested enforcement actions against 246 apps and digital links connected to online wagering. Bangladesh’s High Court Division also ordered investigations into gambling promotions and betting-related financial transactions, increasing judicial pressure on the sector.
What comes next for gambling in Bangladesh points toward a significantly stricter and digitally monitored prohibition model. The new framework is expected to expand government powers to block domains, pursue mobile payment systems, restrict advertising and target online operators before the country’s informal betting ecosystem evolves into a large-scale parallel industry.
