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Illegal Gambling Through Other Businesses’ Card Payments: How the Scheme Works and Who Is Liable
Illegal gambling businesses rarely accept payments under their own name. More often players’ card payments pass through someone else’s ordinary-looking business, and that is exactly what card schemes and banks hold acquirers and payment companies to account for. We go through, according to primary sources, how such a scheme works, what Visa and Mastercard require,…
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An iGaming License: Your Key to a Legal and Successful Online Business
A gaming licence is the foundation of an iGaming business: banks, payment providers and game studios work with licensed operators. The licensing map has changed: Curaçao replaced master licences with direct licences from its Gaming Authority in December 2024, while international projects often also consider Anjouan (Comoros), whose status is now disputed. We go through…
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Brazil’s Betting Ban: Provisional Measure No. 1,394 and What Comes Next
On 25 September 2026 Brazil’s president signed Provisional Measure No. 1,394 (Medida Provisória), which banned fixed-odds betting in the country, that is sports betting and online casinos, including for operators abroad. The regulated market that opened under Law 14,790/2023 is closed. Licences are extinguished on 25 October, banks and payment institutions may not process such…
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Online casino licence: Curaçao, Malta, Estonia, Anjouan or Tobique
Online casino licences compared: Curaçao (LOK), Malta (MGA), Estonia (EMTA), Anjouan and Tobique. Requirements, fees, taxes and timelines from the regulators.
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Loot Boxes and Secondary Markets: When a Game Mechanic Becomes Gambling Under EU and US Law
The same mechanic, a paid random item, may be unlawful gambling in Belgium, fall under a separate regime in France when items can be monetised, and face no federal ban in the US, where the FTC (US Federal Trade Commission) and the states are nonetheless acting. The deciding question is whether the item can be…
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Play-to-Earn (P2E) or Gambling in Disguise? Key Legal Risks for Developers
A P2E project risks being treated as gambling if players pay in, the outcome depends on chance and the reward can be sold. Since 2021 the risks have gone beyond gambling: securities law, MiCA, loot box rules and app store requirements now apply too. We go through how to test a game against the gambling…