A Lao immigrant living in Oregon has won a record $1.3 billion lottery jackpot prize. The winner, Cheng Saephan, said he and his wife will split the prize money. But he also wants to give some of it to a friend who helped him buy the tickets. That friend, Laiza Chao, gave $100 to help buy the batch of tickets that won the big jackpot. The friend is a neighbor of Saephan and lives in the Portland suburb of Milwaukie, not far from where the winning ticket was sold.
The lottery is a popular form of gambling in many countries around the world. There are state-controlled lotteries and private sector operators. State-controlled lotteries often provide a substantial portion of their revenue to public services. Private sector operators have more flexibility in their business practices but do not benefit from the same economies of scale as a state-controlled operation.
There are a variety of different lottery games available, including the national lottery, instant scratch cards, and keno. In addition, some states and territories offer sports betting and online lottery. These activities are regulated by the respective gambling laws. In the United States, large portions of lottery proceeds are used to fund public education systems.
In New Zealand, the Lottery Grants Board distributes lottery profits to community organizations and charities. The board also oversees the management of the country’s national lottery, Lotto New Zealand. The lottery includes the Powerball and Strike games, plus keno and Bullseye, a scratch card game. In addition, New Zealand has a number of private lotteries.
Lottery officials in the communist nation of Laos have been accused of rigging the system by manipulating winning numbers to favor certain players. A caller to RFA’s Lao Service spoke on condition of anonymity, saying that the lottery is controlled by business interests with connections to Lao leaders. The businesses receive a concession to run the lottery and are paid an annual fee for their work, but there is no transparency about the way the lottery is run.
The government in Laos prohibits gambling, but the nation has Special Economic Zones where the activity is legal. As a result, the nation has several land-based casinos. In addition, a number of offshore casinos accept players from Laos without fear of being caught by the authorities. In these casinos, players can find all the most popular games and win real money. In order to play at these sites, however, a player must be over the age of 18.