Offshore Gambling and Betting Platforms Are Often Strictly Regulated and Responsible Businesses
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Negative Perceptions in Media are Usually Misdirected
Offshore gambling and betting websites are often subjected to negative perceptions in the media with claims that such platforms “channel black money, engage in illicit transactions and launder wealth through financial intermediaries.” This is undoubtedly true for some shady operators that make use of India’s largely unregulated online gaming space, but a great number of offshore casino, IPL betting and general sportsbook sites are responsible businesses that have undergone through a lengthy and strict international regulation and licensing process. Thus, media publications that club together shady and fraudulent gaming sites with licensed platforms are misdirected.
A good and informative example of ill-faith betting and gambling sites is provided by a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) heard by the Allahabad High Court in Uttar Pradesh in August 2021. The PIL was focused on gambling sites, allegedly hosted on Chinese servers, that initially were giving out large and frequent prizes to attract gullible Indians. When users started to flock in and bet larger amounts, the operators of the sites allegedly tampered with the algorithms so that most of the players lost their money. Moreover, the occasional winners got a vast portion of their earnings deducted for “tax purposes”.
Such hit-and-run “businesses” must not be mistaken with platforms that seek to establish a long-term presence on the Indian market and have undergone a thorough licensing process. The former may incur substantial financial losses to players before these sites disappear from sight, while the latter provide a safe gaming experience and are here to stay.
Reputable International Gaming Licenses Prove Site’s Integrity at a Glance
A number of offshore instant withdrawal betting sites and casino platforms that operate in Indian online space focus their efforts on building a sustainable and long lasting business. For this purpose, they not only invest time and finances in creating and marketing their websites, they also make sure they bear the stamp of approval by one of the world’s leading and most reputable international gaming licensing authorities to be able to prove their integrity to players at a single glance.
An important common feature of such offshore gambling licenses is that they guarantee the correct working of the licensee’s Random Number Generator (RNG) and Return-to-Player (RTP) algorithms in order to ensure a fair gaming experience to players void of any risks from cheating, odds-tampering and other ill-faith practices.
One of the most prominent examples of a reputable first-rate international gambling licensing body is the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA). It issues separate licences for sports betting, casino gaming, marketing and other related activities after a thorough and lengthy application procedure where scrutiny checks take around half a year.
Adapting to modern-day realities and market requirements, a new Gaming Act was introduced in Malta in 2018, adding more flexibility towards technological developments in gaming, but also significantly strengthening anti-money laundering (AML) and responsible gaming policies.
Reporting requirements for sports betting platforms licensed by the MGA were also increased recently to include suspicious betting activities, linked parties and suppliers, in order to raise integrity and bring down cases of match fixing.
The Curaçao Gaming Control Board (CGCB) is another example of a first-rate international gaming licensing authority. Caribbean Curaçao was formerly a part of the Netherlands and has been one of the oldest gambling jurisdictions in the world since 1996.
Other trustworthy jurisdictions that issue reputable offshore gambling and betting licenses include Gibraltar, Alderney, the Isle of Man, Panama, Antigua and Barbuda, and Kahnawake.
A platform licensed by any of the above international gaming authorities will make sure to state that fact visibly and clearly on its website pages, so that users can verify at a single glance that they have indeed entered a safe and trustworthy online casino or sports betting service. At the same time, the lack of clearly stated information about the license obtained by a gaming site is an unmistakable sign that something is wrong.
