Laos Lottery is a weekly state lottery held by the state enterprise and operated throughout Laos. People can buy tickets via an online sales system and cash prizes may be claimed within 180 days after drawing day.
Vientiane-based lottery distributor company Established in 2009 and led by Sokxay Chaleun as President. They have received multiple awards for their service as professional lotto distributors; paying out winnings promptly as well as operating within special economic zones throughout Laos.
Although Laos lottery draws are administered by the government, allegations have surfaced of winning numbers being altered to avoid large pay-outs. These allegations have been corroborated by numerous players and media reports.
Even after hearing allegations that their lottery was fixed, officials have denied this claim and employed various strategies to limit winners from receiving large sums, including changing numbers widely considered unlucky in Laos to something like “134,” as reported by RFA’s Lao service source. One such tactic used against 509 appeared as ticket sales for October 14 drawing but then changed on day of draw to “134”, an example being 509.
Officials have taken steps to address this problem. In August, Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith’s office sent a directive to the Ministry of Finance which oversees the legal state lottery of Myanmar for better management. Drawings will be reduced from two a week to just one and winnings handled more transparently; informal football lotteries or lottery chances purchased via short messaging services will also be closed down.
Illegal lotteries that operate illegally have taken advantage of people in Laos in addition to state-run lotteries, selling lottery tickets from Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, China and Republic of Korea illegally four times every day in spite of legal state lottery operations in Laos. Finance Minister Bounchom Ubonpaseuth recently addressed this issue at National Assembly; noting that illegal lotteries from these countries continue to sell tickets even though Laos has its own state lottery in operation.