PM orders probe of Kong Salak Plus lottery after owner boasts THB18bn sales
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered a probe of the Kong Salak Plus online lottery platform after the company announced a whopping 18 billion baht in sales this year.
The 15-day investigation by the Government Lottery Office, Anti-Money Laundering Office and Department of Special Investigation will focus on the business operations and tax filings of the popular lottery ticket seller, which is owned by tycoon Phantawat Nakwisut.
The sales figure of 18 billion baht was announced by Phantawat on his Facebook page earlier this month.
The tycoon made headlines recently by declaring he would spend 67 million baht to purchase broadcasting rights for the ongoing Asea Football Federation (AFF) Championship so that Thais can watch it for free.
This led many people to question where he had got the money from, since Kong Salak Plus reported only 9.3 million baht in profit from sales worth 1 billion baht last year.
“By law, sellers of government lottery tickets are subject to 7% VAT, as well as corporate income tax of 20% on profit if they are a juristic person,” said a source familiar with the investigation.
“The investigation will uncover if the company has paid the required tax on the 18 billion baht in sales that it claimed.”
In April, Kong Salak Plus offices in Bangkok were raided in a police crackdown on overpriced lottery tickets. In June, the committee tasked with tackling overpriced lottery tickets found that many small-time vendors were selling their ticket quotas to Kong Salak Plus and other online lottery platforms.
