Antigua Passes

Thrilled does not begin to describe the Antiguan online casino industry. They have just been approved for the white list in the United Kingdom. It may sound like a small thing, but it is anything but.

By being placed on the white list they have demonstrated that they are sufficiently regulated and safe for players. All 96 online casinos in that are licensed in Antigua and Barbuda have gotten this distinction, and this allows them to advertise in the UK. They had applied to the United Kingdom’s Department of Culture, Media and Sport and were waiting to hear how they had done and they just passed.

As of November 21st the country’s online casinos can advertise their services to the citizens of the UK. The British Minister of Sport said that he was "content that Antigua and Barbuda has the legal authority to regulate gambling and that its current system of regulation and licensing provides a robust and adequately resourced framework to uphold our shared objectives: to prevent gambling from becoming a source of crime; and to keep gambling fair and open and to protect children and vulnerable people."

This is huge for the tiny country as they have been battling both a financial and an image problem since the passing of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, or UIGEA. The county took a large hit financially with the passage of the Act, and has been trying to battle their way back from it. Many have seen this as a negative for the country, but with the majority of their income coming from online casinos and gambling, it was imperative that they have additional income coming from somewhere.

They lost millions and have been looking for a way to increase their income, and getting on the white list is the perfect way to do this. It will undoubtedly cause their numbers to double exponentially from here. This could be just the thing they need to bring themselves out of the financial problems they are in.