Brunei, the country with the fifth largest GDP in Asia, may not be considered small in size and has a small population, but it cannot stand up to its wealth and mines. It is famous for its universal tax exemption. Brunei's oil and natural gas account for 67% of the country's total product value. When people have money, they will start to have lustful thoughts when they are full and warm, which is completely in line with the characteristics of high-end gambling players. Today, the editor of Tianchengbao.com will talk about the potential of Brunei’s gaming market. And some things you need to pay attention to when entering the Brunei gambling market.

Brunei's full name is "Brunei Darussalam", a small country with a land area of ​​5,765 square kilometers, which can be said to be half the size of Macau. It is one of the smallest countries in Asia, with Brunei ranking fifth. The total population is only 443,500, of which 48.2% are women and 51.8% are men. At the beginning of 2022, the majority of Brunei's population lived in cities, with 78.8% of Brunei's population living in urban centers and 21.2% living in rural areas. However, Brunei's per capita income is quite high, and was once far ahead of Singapore. As of 2022, Brunei's per capita GDP is US$31,722.66, while China's per capita GDP is only US$12,556.33. In other words, Brunei's per capita GDP is 2.34 times that of China. Comparing it with Shenzhen, Brunei's per capita GDP is higher than Shenzhen. In 2021, Shenzhen's per capita GDP is US$26,900.

Brunei has an innate advantage. To put it simply, it means that there are real mines at home! The situation is basically similar to that of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, which mainly export oil and natural gas. Oil and natural gas account for 65% of Brunei's national GDP. It has been a huge profit in the past two years. Due to the energy crisis in Europe, the prices of oil and natural gas have been soaring. The Brunei government's oil and natural gas revenue has tripled.

Brunei Government Revenue: Oil and Gas Revenue

The data on January 3, 2022 states that the revenue is BND4,004.200 million.

The data on January 3, 2021 is BND1,242.630.

It can be said that Brunei has a higher proportion of potential bettors than Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar and other Southeast Asian countries. With such income, smartphones are more widely used. In January 2022, Brunei had 421,300 Internet users. By early 2022, Brunei's Internet penetration rate will reach 95.0% of the total population. Internet users in Brunei increased by 3,775 (+0.9%) between 2021 and 2022. 22,200 people in Brunei did not use the Internet at the beginning of 2022, which means that 5.0% of the population was still offline at the beginning of the year.

We found out from data released by Ookla that Internet users in Brunei are expected to have the following Internet connection speeds in early 2022:
Average mobile internet connection speed over cellular: 62.09 Mbps.
Average fixed internet connection speed: 32.98 Mbps.
Data from Ookla shows that Brunei's median mobile internet connection speed increased by 38.85 Mbps (+167%) in the twelve months to early 2022.

As of January 2022, Brunei had 516,500 social media users. The number of social media users in Brunei is equivalent to 116% of the total population (the number of social media users may not mean that a person only uses one social account)
According to Kepios analysis, social media users in Brunei increased by 82,000 (+18.7%) between 2021 and 2022. It shows that more people are using multiple social accounts at the same time

Brunei FB users

At the beginning of 2022, Facebook had 298,600 users in Brunei. If you are an advertiser, Facebook advertising coverage in Brunei is equivalent to 70.9% of the total population. (regardless of age)
Facebook used by “users aged 13+” in Brunei in 2022. The proportion is 83.0%. (Facebook limits its users to those 13 and older)
At the beginning of 2022, 42.6% of Facebook advertising users in Brunei were female and 57.4% were male.

Brunei IG users

At the beginning of 2022, the number of users using IG in Brunei reached 319,900. Exceeding FB users, the market coverage is equivalent to 72.1% of the total population.
In 2022, "users over 13 years old" in Brunei use IG. The proportion is 89.9%. (IG limits its user age to those 13 and older)
At the beginning of 2022, 54.8% of IG’s advertising recipients in Brunei were women and 45.2% were men (this data is exactly the opposite of FB. Most of IG’s users are women)

Facebook Messenger users in Brunei

Data published in Meta advertising resources show that at the beginning of 2022, advertising on Facebook Messenger reached 170,500 users in Brunei. Advertising coverage is equivalent to 38.4% of the total population.
42.0% of Facebook Messenger’s advertising audience in Brunei are female and 58.0% are male, which is basically similar to FB’s user characteristics.

It can be said that social media has been the main advertising channel in Brunei in recent years. User coverage is quite high. The users of LinkedIn and Twitter account for less than 100,000 of the total population. Brunei's urbanization and planning are also basically complete, with more than 78% of the population living in cities.

At the same time, Brunei's online payment penetration rate has also increased with the popularity of online applications. Brunei's mobile payments are mainly DSTPay, NEXGEN Wallet, and BruPay. However, e-wallets such as Neteller and Skrill accept Bruneian players and also offer currency exchange. Local user registration is also accepted.

Brunei is dominated by Muslims and can be regarded as a religious country. In terms of life, if Brunei people want to drink, they have to drive to Malaysia next door to buy alcohol, or drink it and come back. There is no nightlife in Brunei, no heterosexual massage, no OK, and gambling is also prohibited. So in such an abstinent country, is it possible to break into the gambling market?

Football, golf and polo are very popular in Brunei, as well as the local sport of sepak takraw, which is similar to "foot volleyball". However, the locals are mainly Muslim and Islam dominates. This is why in Brunei, all forms of gambling are clearly and unequivocally illegal. There are no casinos or gaming halls here. Nonetheless, most Brunei bettors choose iGaming as they try to satisfy their gambling cravings. At the same time, iGaming solves Bruneian gamblers’ needs for security and privacy. Bruneians hope for sports, and sports-focused betting platforms are trying to enter the Brunei betting market. At the same time, due to Brunei's religion and other reasons, Bruneians are more curious about betting or have a new mentality to sign up for betting platforms.

Summary

Characteristics of Brunei: The people have economic strength, and the penetration rate of the Internet and smartphones is high. Gambling is prohibited locally, but in how many countries is gambling fully open? Vietnam, Thailand, China, etc. are all prohibited. Currently, the gaming market in Southeast Asia is still dominated by these countries. However, considering that Brunei is a predominantly Muslim country, white label iGaming companies must pay attention to cultural differences when providing the Brunei white label iGaming platform. In terms of UC interface design, whether the language translation is correct, the security of the platform and user privacy, etc. Focusing on factors to consider, TC-GAMING has been deeply involved in the white label iGaming industry for 15 years. With many years of white label iGaming experience, and based on customer needs and market user orientation, it provides the best white label iGaming in Southeast Asia. You don’t need to worry about where to start with visual design. and layout, and hired 18 local language experts for translation to present the most accurate local terminology. Even each button has a UC interface designed by a senior local designer to conform to the aesthetics and operating habits of local users. 7x24 hours online operation and maintenance services and dedicated services, with professional technical team support to protect your iGaming platform until the it goes online. TC-GAMING puts technology first and continuously introduces advanced applicable technologies to ensure the stable operation of the gaming platform and promote the growth of the gaming business. TC-GAMING is the best choice in Southeast Asia!