If you are a resident of Singapore, you probably have heard of 4D and TOTO. But did you know that these betting games are actually a product of a state-owned company called Singapore Pools? Yeo explains that they were established on 23 May 1968 to combat the serious problem of illegal bookies. And since then, they have moved on from traditional counter-service to a digital platform that allows customers to onboard, manage their accounts and bet anytime, anywhere.
The company’s roster of products has grown over the years. In addition to Toto, it also offers the four-digit game 4D and the sports betting game SuperSport. Besides that, they offer online casino games and a mobile app that is compatible with iOS and android gizmos. The app is free to download and can be used from any location in the world as long as gambling is legal there.
Toto was Singapore Pools’ first product when it was launched in 1968, followed by the four-digit game 4D in 1986. They later added sports betting in 1999, initially for football and motorsport before adding horse racing in 2019. The company is owned by Tote Board, a statutory body that is regulated by the government of Singapore.
Singapore Pools is not just a lottery operator, but a charitable organisation that supports arts and community development. The company gives out around S$9 billion to winners every year, and a significant proportion of these funds is donated to charities and social causes.
In addition to donating money, Singapore Pools has also been supporting community events for many years. In fact, they have a special day where they close their retail outlets and allow staff to volunteer in different community events. This is to promote responsible gaming and show that the company takes their responsibility seriously.
Another way Singapore Pools contributes to the community is by organising charity events for its customers. This is done to support a variety of worthy causes, including child care and development, education, the arts, health and community welfare. They even provide funding for a number of local sports clubs.
During the COVID-19 crisis, Singapore Pools faced a number of challenges. One of the most pressing was data security. With so many staff working remotely, it was important to ensure the IT infrastructure could scale as demand increased. By moving to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, Singapore Pools was able to improve IT visibility and agility, which in turn helped minimise risk and deliver consistent performance. It also cut monitoring time by half, allowing the company to resolve issues more quickly. This has ultimately improved IT performance and customer satisfaction. You can read more about how they did it by downloading the case study.