Online casinos are the virtual version of traditional casinos, and allow people to play and gamble on games using the internet. These platforms offer all kinds of casino games such as poker, blackjack and slot machines, among many others.
In simpler terms, online casinos provide for little interaction between the players and the dealer. The dealer is generally a computer program. However, there is a lot of red tape around virtual casinos and online poker.
First and foremost, any online casino has to have license to operate in a specific region. Governments have to issue gaming licenses to these virtual casino operators. But most countries do not have a separate regulatory authority to vet these operators, and more than often people end up losing money to scammers.
Casinos must have a license from proper authorities that proves they meet certain standards of security, safety, reliability and fairness. If an online casino does Here are some of the prominent gambling jurisdictions that issue licenses to online casinos.
Country | Licensing Authority |
UK | UK Gambling Commission |
France | Autorité Nationale des Jeux |
Italy | Amministrazione Autonoma dei Monopoli di Stato |
Spain | Dirección General de Ordenación del Juego |
Belgium | Belgian Gaming Commission |
Netherlands | The Kansspelautoriteit |
Sweden | Swedish Gambling Authority |
Denmark | Spillemyndigheden |
Australia | ACT Gambling and Racing Commission |
Singapore | Casino Regulatory Authority of Singapore |
Malta | Malta Gaming Authority |
Gibraltar | Gibraltar Regulatory Authority |
Macao | Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau |
Isle of Man | Gambling Supervision Commission |
Antigua and Barbuda | Directorate of Offshore Gambling |
Curaçao | The Curaçao Gaming Control Board |
A word of warning: it is relatively easy to get a gambling license in Malta, Gibraltar and comparable nations. The protection offered to you as a consumer is limited, especially if you do not live in these countries.
International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR) has representatives from gaming regulators from across the world. You can view the full list of IAGR members. Another helpful site is the Gaming Regulators European Forum.
Additionally, you can also take the following measures to ensure your money is safe.
However, the best thing to do is always check if they have a license to operate in your country. In this way when there is an issue, you can contact the authority to get help.
Here we list some of the reliable online casinos and their licensing authorities. Please remember that gambling could be addictive and in the end, the casino always wins...
Online Casino | Licensing Authority |
Rizk |
Malta Gaming Authority UK Gaming Commission Swedish Gambling Authority |
Genesis Casino |
Malta Gaming Authority UK Gambling Commission |
888 Casino |
Malta Gaming Authority UK Gambling Commission Gibraltar Regulatory Authority |
Royal Panda | Malta Gaming Authority |
Casumo | Malta Gaming Authority |
LeoVegas | Malta Gaming Authority |
Dunder |
Malta Gaming Authority UK Gambling Commission |
Casimba |
UK Gambling Commission Swedish Gambling Authority Malta Gaming Authority |
Betway |
Malta Gaming Authority UK Gambling Commission |
Karamba |
Malta Gaming Authority UK Gambling Commission |
Rizk.com is at the forefront of innovative, simple and fair online gaming. They have worked tirelessly to create an intelligent, user-driven interface that will ensure you can enjoy an online gaming experience like no other. Rizk also happens to be the architect of the Wheel of Rizk, which provides you with instant rewards, just for playing. These rewards carry absolutely no wagering requirements as the company firmly believes in transparent gaming, completely void of all small print.
Genesis Gaming Solutions is a United States casino gaming company founded in 1999 and headquartered in Spring, Texas. Genesis Gaming focuses on casino gaming software namely the BRAVO Poker applications which assist casinos in the organization of poker games including table management and player tracking.
888casino is an online gambling site operated by 888 Holdings. It was founded in 1997 and is based in Gibraltar. It is one of the Internet's oldest casinos. In 2013 it became the first exclusively online casino to be licensed in the United States. Key products include online roulette, blackjack, vividly designed slots machines, and a market-leading live casino.
Royal Panda provides a combination of casino and sports betting with live opportunities in both areas. There are quite a few restricted countries, but players from the UK, Canada, the Netherlands, and a few other allowable jurisdictions have plenty of fee-free banking options with 24-hour e-wallet payouts, a non-traditional bonus rollover structure. Players have access to nearly 600 casino games from a combination of the top software providers as well as a lengthy menu of sports betting markets.
Casumo is a Maltese online casino and sportsbook services company, which includes video slots, jackpot games, live casino, table games and betting. Casumo has its headquarters in Malta in Swieqi, and has additional offices in Barcelona and Gibraltar. Casumo also owns online casino operators Dunder and Kazoom Casino. Casumo is licensed to operate remote gaming business by the Malta Gaming Authority.
LeoVegas AB is a Swedish mobile gaming company and provider of online casino and sports betting services such as table games, video slots, progressive jackpots, video poker and live betting to a number of international markets. The online casino and sports betting products are licensed and regulated under the service of the Maltese Lottery and Gaming Authority (MGA). LeoVegas offers a number of casino games from game providers including NetEnt, Yggdrasil, Evolution Gaming, IGT, Play N’ Go, Playtech, Microgaming, Authentic Gaming, Bally and WMS. Some of the casino games offered are roulette, blackjack, baccarat and Caribbean stud poker.
Dunder Casino is one of the top online casino gambling sites in the world. It has over one thousand different games made available to its players to gamble with. As much as the company has many customers, it is however restricted in the following countries: Nigeria, the United States, Hong Kong, Denmark, Spain, Belgium and some more countries. The online casino is licensed and regulated by the UK government. Dunder incorporated very many virtual and live games into its website. These games have been developed by several top gaming companies in the world. The companies are NextGen Gaming, NextEnt, Microgaming, Bally, BarCrest, QuickSpin, Thunderkick, SGI and Evolution Gaming.
Casimba Casino is part of the Imperium Network Solutions Group running on the White Hat Gaming Platform. Casimba Casino is triple licensed: in Malta by the MGA ,by Curacao eGaming and in Great Britain by the UKGC. They provide a range of games from: NetEnt, Microgaming, Thunderkick, WHG, ELK Studios, Multicommerce, 2 by 2 Gaming, Merkur, Lightning Box, Just for the Win, Genesis, Foxium, Big Time Gaming, Micro, Aristocrat, Leander Gaming and NYX.
Betway Group (commonly known as Betway) is a global online gambling company, owned by Super Group. Betway is a global online gambling company that operates across regulated online marketplaces. Launched in 2006 the brand holds licences in countries including UK, Malta, Italy, Denmark, Spain, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, Mexico, South Africa, Portugal, India and Ireland. Betway Group is a member of the European Sports Security Association the Independent Betting Adjudication Service, the Remote Gambling Association and is accredited by international testing agency eCOGRA.
Karamba casino is part of the Aspire Global group. They are licensed in the United Kingdom by the UKGC and Malta by the MGA. They use Net Entertainment, NextGen Gaming and Amaya.
Sources: Wikipedia, Crunchbase, Gamblingsites, Hallfogames, Thepogg