Singapore’s Auditor-General’s Office (AGO) has found weaknesses in the country’s gambling safeguards after individuals barred from gambling were allowed to enter casinos and continue placing bets online.
In its latest audit report, the AGO said lapses in the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Singapore‘s (GRA) management operations allowed excluded persons (EPs) to access both land-based casinos and remote gambling services.
“We found lapses in the management operations at the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Singapore (GRA),” the report said.
The AGO added that “oversight could be improved to ensure excluded persons (EPs) are prohibited from gambling.”
Excluded persons admitted to casinos
“Our data analysis found that EPs had entered local casinos while under exclusion orders, and individuals were allowed entry despite exceeding their monthly casino visit limits,” the AGO said.
According to the report, 120 individuals under exclusion orders entered Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa between April 2023 and March 2025. Of these, 107 individuals entered the casinos about 1,100 times and were reported by casino operators to the GRA. Another 13 individuals made 108 casino entries that were not reported.
The audit also found that 26 people exceeded their monthly casino visit limits and were admitted to casinos another 102 times beyond those limits.
Online betting safeguards failed
“We also found that Singapore Pools accounts held by EPs were not closed to prevent them from remote gambling, with some account holders placing bets while under exclusion orders,” the report said.
The audit found that 79 Singapore Pools accounts belonging to excluded persons remained active instead of being closed. Among them, 21 account holders placed 1,358 online bets totaling around SGD75,800 ($58,716) while under exclusion orders.
The AGO warned that “these lapses could undermine the safeguards to protect vulnerable individuals from gambling harm.”
Authorities blame system issues
According to The Straits Times, GRA and Singapore’s Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF), which oversees the National Council on Problem Gambling, attributed the unreported casino entries to data migration and other system-related issues that affected automatic screening.
According to the report, the agencies said the errors had been rectified by February 2026.
The AGO also noted that the GRA has begun investigations into possible regulatory offences committed by individuals who entered casinos while under exclusion orders.
Part of wider public sector audit
The gambling findings formed part of the AGO’s latest audit of government financial statements and the financial statements of statutory boards, government-owned companies and other public entities. The report also identified lapses at other public agencies, including the Housing & Development Board (HDB), where management operations required improvement.
Beyond gambling oversight, the wider audit highlighted issues involving procurement, financial governance, contract management and levy administration across several government agencies.
For the GRA, however, the Auditor-General concluded that stronger oversight is needed to ensure exclusion measures are properly enforced and continue to protect vulnerable individuals from gambling-related harm.
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