Singapore to regulate trading cards to mitigate risk of gambling inducement
Trading cards are among the items typically found in blind boxes - sealed packages where the items inside are not disclosed to the buyer at the point of purchase.
A player holds Pokemon TCG (Trading Cards Game) cards at the Anaheim Convention Center Arena in Anaheim, California, on Aug 16, 2025. (File photo: AFP/Frederic J Brown)
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SINGAPORE: Trading card packs will soon be regulated in Singapore, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said on Friday (Feb 27), part of the country's measures to address gambling-related risks from the sale of blind boxes.
Blind boxes are sealed packages where the items inside, typically collectable toys, figurines or cards, are not disclosed to the buyer at the point of purchase.
“MHA and the Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA) are intending to introduce regulations to regulate the sale of blind boxes, including trading card packs, to mitigate the risk of gambling inducement,” MHA told CNA on Friday.
“We are drafting the regulations and will share more details when ready. The expected implementation timeline will also be shared in due course.”
Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam, responding to a question in Parliament, said earlier this month that his ministry and the Gambling Regulatory Authority were drafting regulations on how blind boxes may be offered.
On Monday, Mr Shanmugam said MHA will share the specifics of the regulations when they are ready, sometime around the middle of this year.
“These regulations aim to mitigate the gambling inducement risk of blind boxes, including the potential of a product to induce consumers to spend excessively,” he said in a written answer to a parliamentary question filed by MP Hazlina Abdul Halim (PAP-East Coast) on the regulations.
“Additional measures, such as age-based restrictions and probability disclosure, will be considered subsequently as we need more time to study them.”
Ms Hazlina had sought details on measures in the regulations that would prevent compulsive behaviour among minors arising from blind boxes. She also asked how the regulations would be enforced and what penalties would apply for not complying with them.
Under the Gambling Control Act, certain types of lower-risk gambling services, such as lucky draws, are allowed to be offered under a class licence regime in which there is no need to apply for a licence from the Gambling Regulatory Authority.
However, social services warn that the normalisation of blind box purchases and other chance-based games could pose serious concern for children and youths, where the thrill of uncertainty could quickly escalate into compulsive behaviour, or trigger anxiety and depression.
