When it comes to playing in any online casino website, there’s only one truly reliable way for online casino players to trust and have confidence in the integrity of the casino games they play and ultimately ensure that they aren’t being cheated on, as players can’t really see how the results of each spin (for slots) or hand (for card games) is being determined. To put it simply, in order for an online casino website to be considered trustworthy by its casino players, that casino website requires to be licensed by an Official Gambling Licensing Entity / Organization and also certified by an Online Gaming Regulator. This is the case for all online casino websites out there, as that’s the only reliable way that online players have to be sure that the casino sites they’re looking to play at are certified as legitimate betting sites. Now, whenever you’re checking if a casino website is in fact officially licensed and certified, it’s important to know which are the best online gaming regulators that currently operate within each continent and/or country.
Most Recognized Official Licensing Entities & Online Gaming Regulators
AMERICAS
North America & Central America
Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB): First created in 1955 by the state legislature, this gambling entity has long been the body charged with overseeing the state’s extensive casino industry. Due to the large volume of casino gambling activities they oversee, the NGCB has recently become one of the most influential names in the landscape of gaming regulation, for which many other gambling entities have modeled their own regulatory methods after those first pioneered in Nevada. Since 2013, the NGCB has also overseen the implementation of Internet poker within the state. Currently, any interactive licenses that are issued here only allow a casino operator to offer poker games within state borders (plus within networks specifically shared with Delaware).
North America & South America
Panama Gaming Control Board (Junta de Control de Juegos): Since 2002, Panama’s Gaming Control Board (PGCB) has been providing licenses to online casino companies that wish to offer regulated online gambling to their players, not only within the country, but also throughout the rest of the world. Since PGCB has very strong requirements for online casino operators when it comes to topics like software testing and money-laundering policies, any casino operator that’s licensed by PGCB is typically considered to be 100% trustworthy by players. Furthermore, since PGCB also charges significantly low fees to any casino operators they have has clients and is also represented by a very stable government that holds quite a good relationship with both North and South America ultimately make it a desirable Online Gaming Regulator for many casino operators.
Caribbean
Curacao Internet Gambling Association (CIGA): While online gambling has existed in the island of Curaçao since 1993, the CIGA was only created in 2002 as a necessary solution to directly oversee the industry. This Online Gaming Regulator initially offered “master licenses” to gambling companies that were interested in running iGaming sites from the island’s nation. However, nowadays, most new online casino operators simply want to take advantage of CIGA’s “sub licenses,” which are issued out from those who hold the master licenses to any third parties that are specifically interested in setting up Curaçao online casinos.
Canada
Kahnawake Gaming Commission (KGC): Since 1999, this licensing authority (which regulates casino games originating from the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawake in Quebec) has been one of the most recognized names in online gambling regulation. Compared to many other online gaming regulators, the KGC demands a very small amount when it comes to taxes and fees, which consequently makes it an attractive licensing entity for casino operators to get their license from, more specifically if they aren’t looking to enter locally-regulated markets. This licensing authority is also known for taking player disputes quite seriously, with valid complaints frequently being upheld by their own officials.
EUROPE
Malta Gaming Authority (MGA): Starting with what’s probably EU’s most known operator, we have Malta’s Gaming Authority. This renowned Online Gaming Regulator oversees a very large number of online casino operators, all of whom are happy to take advantage of the relatively generous tax scheme offered by MGA, along with their friendly local financial institutions, plus the ability to use MGA’s official license to be able to take bets from virtually anywhere in the world (which is what makes them one of the most desirable Online Gaming Regulators for online casinos to request a license from).
Gibraltar Licensing Authority (GLA): Since the 1990s, the isle of Gibraltar (located of the coast of southern Spain) became an unlikely hub for the online betting industry. Nowadays, GLA regulates any online casino operators that headquarter themselves within Gibraltar under the laws set in place by the Gambling Act of 2005. While the license emitted by GLA is considered to be quite a high-grade and top-notch online casino license, since Gibraltar’s government conducts direct investigations and grants licenses based solely on each online casino operator’s track record, online casinos that do not have a proven track record are very unlikely to obtain one. Plus, GLA’s license also has quite a high maintenance cost, so any casino operator looking to get it already needs to have a stable income.
UK Gambling Commission (UKGC): Established by the Gambling Act of 2005, the UKGC regulates most forms of betting within the United Kingdom, with the exception of sports betting, which is handled separately. This Online Gaming Regulator oversees remote betting, which includes the licensing of online gaming sites as well as the licensing of online casinos within the UK. That said, the license emitted by UKGC is required by any casino operators who are looking to take remote betting from players residing within the UK.
ASIA
PAGCOR and FCLRC (Philippines): When it comes to Asian countries, the Philippines are the only notable nation in Asia that offers online casino regulators operating within Asia a trustworthy gambling license that they can take advantage of. Therefore, any casino operators that want to target the Asian market should look to acquire a Filipino license so that they can be considered legal and legit to play at. Not only that, but any casino operator that’s headquartered here can also take advantage of extensive tax credits and ultimately attract customers from anywhere in the world. However, they are required to agree not to target Filipino residents, and are not permitted to take bets on sporting events that are taking place specifically within the Philippines.
AUSTRALIA/OCEANIA
ACT Gambling and Racing Commission: While Australia has some pretty strict rules when it comes to online gambling and online betting, there are still certain forms of wagering which are still allowed within Australia for as long as those casino operators have a and official and up-to-date license from the ACT Gambling and Racing Commission. Those licenses include lotteries and also race books, both of which can be offered by those casino operators to any Australian customers. In addition, ACT-GRC also issues licenses to any Aussie betting sites that wish to have their license.
