How To Verify Crypto Casino Licenses

Want to know if the crypto casino you’re playing on is legit? Are they being honest about their license? Here’s everything you need to know…

Bitcoin and crypto casinos have witnessed a significant surge in popularity in recent years. A key contributing factor to this trend is the rising adoption of cryptocurrencies worldwide. However, just like any other online gambling platforms, Bitcoin casinos are subject to licensing and regulation.

This article provides a comprehensive guide on how to verify crypto casino licenses, particularly those authorized via the sometimes rather confusing rules of the Curacao government. However, we’ve also gone into detail about verifying licenses from Malta and the UK too, the two most prestigious licenses to hold for casino sites in Europe.

Understanding Curacao Gambling Licenses

Before diving into the verification process, it’s crucial to understand how Curacao gambling licenses work. Interestingly, the Curacao government does not issue gambling licenses directly to online casinos. Instead, as far back as 1996, they designated four private entities to license and regulate online casinos within their jurisdiction. These entities are referred to as master license operators.

The First Check in License Verification

Despite the individualized license verification procedures for each master license operator, there is a shared feature. Each online casino licensed by a Curacao master license operator must include a licensed seal at the bottom of their website. This seal allows online casino players to verify the casino’s authenticity with ease.

Antillephone’s logo can be seen highlighted by a red box in the left hand side

The Gaming Curacao logo is highlighted by red underline in the right hand corner

To verify a license, a player simply clicks on the seal (you can see the logos next to the licensing companies in the section below). This action redirects them to the license verification website specific to the master license operator. Here, the player can confirm the license’s validity.

It appears as a certificate pop up, and the way to tell a fake from a genuine one is the domain or URL. These are impossible to fake. But we’ll show you some examples shortly.

When it comes to the UK and Malta, there are also logos in the footer of the crypto casino website. Or, you might simply have a statement detailing the licensing body and the number. You can then go to the relevant body’s register online and check. We’ll show you how to do it further down the page.

Verification Procedures for Each Master License Operator

Now that we’ve covered the common aspects of license verification, let’s delve into the specific procedures for each master license operator. Note that each operator has a unique seal and verification domain name. Later on in this guide we’ll show you these correct domain URLs using real-time screenshots.

Verifying a Antillephone (8048/JAZ) Gambling License

The verification domain name for Antillephone licenses is validator.antillephone.com. Note that the “antillephone.com” portion of the domain name is constant, while the prefix may change in the future.

In our experience, the majority of casinos on Crypto Lists that have crypto payment options use Antillephone to license their casinos. This may change in the future with the introduction of further crypto-specific legislation in Europe, however, for whatever reason this seems to be the most popular of the Curacao master licenses.

Verifying a Gaming Curacao (365/JAZ) Gambling License

The verification domain name for Gaming Curacao licenses is licensing.gaming-curacao.com. The “gaming-curacao.com” portion is constant, while the prefix may change one day.

The also have a website where you can double check, as linked above, however when we tested it, it wasn’t particularly responsive. However, in our experience, the second most popular licensing body for casinos with a Curacao license is this one.

Verifying a Curacao eGaming (1668/JAZ) Gambling License

The verification domain name for Curacao eGaming licenses is validator.curacao-egaming.com. Here too, the “curacao-egaming.com” portion is constant while the prefix may change at some point.

You can also go to the link above and enter the casino’s domain name. This will provide further verification if you’re wanting absolute peace of mind about the site you’re trying out. Although having a license isn’t necessarily the be all and end all, if they’re lying about this then what else might they be dishonest about? Points to ponder!

Verifying a Curacao Interactive Licensing (CIL) (5536/JAZ) Gambling License

CIL does not have a dedicated webpage for license verification. Instead, casinos licensed by CIL provide a signed license agreement in the footer of their domain. However, this method isn’t entirely reliable as the agreement can be easily forged. As such, dealing with Curacao Interactive Licensing N.V. is not generally recommended.

That doesn’t mean every casino that uses CIL isn’t legit, it’s just a a reminder to perhaps take some extra precaution and bear it in mind.

Verifying Malta Gambling Authority (MGA) Licenses

Now for the final two. But first up is the Malta gambling license (MGA). This is considered one of the most reputable and predominantly fiat-only. However, some of the casinos using a Malta license have a semi-workaround that allows you to use crypto. Often, sites have a crypto-accepting payment processor such as MiFinity where you can deposit your BTC or ETH.

There’s a handy drop down menu too, so you can search for an operator that way, but if you type the first letter of the name it will filter the results for you. It’s very professional, and provides you with a detailed overview of the type of license(s) the operator has, as well as contact information for the company.

Verifying UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) Licenses

Last but not least is the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC), and the majority of sites we’ve come across here are fiat-only. Like with Malta, you can easily match the name of the casino operator (found in the footer of a casino’s website or in the terms and conditions) with the license to see if they’re telling the truth. Over time, Crypto Lists expects that Gibraltar will become more of a hub for Bitcoin friendly casinos since they already have rules and regulation in place for cryptocurrency trading on a high level / good.

The register is good because if you search for something only slightly related to the casino operator’s name, it will find it and tell you all the different sites they operate as well as all the specific licenses and sublicenses.

The Importance of Domain Names in License Verification

Domain names, the unique addresses of websites on the internet, play a crucial role in license verification. Many scam casinos create fake license verification webpages that look identical to the legit ones.

They typically alter one letter, suffix, or prefix in the domain name to make it appear similar to the legit one. Therefore, it’s crucial to not only click on the license verification seal, but also to confirm that you’re on the legit verification website.

Below you can see some correct images of the way these certificates should look.

Antillephone certificate

As you can see, the domain (validator.antillephone.com) is highlighted in red, and this will never change if the license certificate is genuine. It might only be a tiny tweak, but the scammers out there don’t expect people to check the URL at all. So, you’re already one step ahead just by reading this guide!

Gaming Curacao certificate

The Gaming Curacao domain name (licensing.gaming-curacao.com) is highlighted in red as always, and the certificate itself shows that the BetFury is verified. However, in the cases where it’s not, instead of a green ‘Verified’ tick, you’ll see a red cross. It’s very clear when you come across it.

Curacao eGaming certificate

Here’s the license for Bitcasino IO (review), one of the oldest Bitcoin casinos around. A true classic that we recommend trying. And, the domain (verification.curacao-egaming.com) is highlighted. But in addition, there’s also an extra check you can take, as described below…

Curacao eGaming verification page

As you can see, there’s also the additional verification page as described in the above section. You simply head on over to the Curacao eGaming website (linked in the above section) and enter the name of the casino, plus the Captcha text to verify that you’re human. And hey presto, you can some extra proof and peace of mind.

Curacao Interactive Licensing (CIL) certificate

As we mentioned earlier, CIL license certificates don’t appear on a separate, checkable URL. They come on a PDF, which is easier to forge. Although in this case, BC Game (see more) is a massive crypto casino that’s highly regarded, we’d recommend additional caution when trying out CIL-licensed sites for obvious reasons.

So there you have it, four examples from the four Curacao licensing bodies. It’s a pretty complicated thing to understand fully, since most jurisdictions have only one license issuer, and there isn’t master license holders, sublicenses, and so on.

The Necessity of Verifying Curacao Gambling Licenses

While it’s always a good idea to verify the license of a new online crypto casino you want to try out, it becomes especially important when dealing with casinos licensed in Curacao’s jurisdiction. This is because there are numerous scam casinos that falsely claim to hold a Curacao license. By verifying the license, you can protect yourself from such scams and semi-scams.

With Malta, the UK, and other more ‘established’ jurisdictions, the need to verify might feel like less of a priority. However, it’s worth doing just for that additional peace of mind. The good news is, Crypto Lists does it for you as part of our review process.

Crypto Casino License Verification: Wrap Up

While Curacao gambling licenses often attract controversy, they are part and parcel of the crypto iGaming industry. The main issue lies with fake Curacao casinos that tarnish the reputation of the jurisdiction and the casinos that completely play by the rules. When you find yourself on a reputable Curacao-licensed casino, you can often enjoy better bonuses and promotions due to the relatively low license fees and taxes in Curacao.