The Anjouan gambling licence is a real, statutory offshore licence that offers a light-touch, low-cost regulatory framework. It provides some meaningful player protections, but it is not a Tier-1 licence and offers far less security than regimes like the UK Gambling Commission or the Malta Gaming Authority. Here is a factual assessment.
What the Anjouan Licence Actually Is?
Anjouan is an autonomous island within the Union of the Comoros. Its gambling framework is built on the Betting and Gaming Act of 2005 (also referred to as the Computer Gaming Licensing Act 007 of 2005) . Since a 2023 overhaul administered by Anjouan Licensing Services Inc. (ALSI), the jurisdiction has issued over 1,400 licences covering more than 3,000 sites, making it one of the fastest-growing offshore licensing hubs.
The licence is comprehensive: a single authorization covers online casino, sportsbook, poker, lottery, and crypto games, for both B2C operators and B2B suppliers.
How It Protects Players?
The Anjouan framework does impose mandatory player-protection obligations on licensees. These are conditions of holding the licence, not optional policies.
Protection Area What the Licence Requires?
Age Verification Operators must verify player identity and block under-18s before account approval or gameplay .
Self-Exclusion Tools Players must have accessible options to suspend their accounts (time-outs, cool-off, permanent exclusion).
Responsible Gaming Policies Operators must document and enforce policies to prevent problem gambling, monitor behavior patterns, and provide risk information.
Marketing Restrictions
Ads must not target minors, must disclose odds and bonus terms honestly, and must not target restricted markets .
ADR Requirement (2026)
Every licensee must now designate an approved Alternative Dispute Resolution provider, giving players an independent channel to resolve complaints.
AML/KYC Obligations
Ongoing due diligence, source-of-funds checks, transaction monitoring, and beneficial ownership transparency are required.
Regulatory Enforcement
The authority can suspend or revoke licences for non-compliance; recent FATF-driven tightening has strengthened these powers.
What It Does Not Protect Against?
The limits of the Anjouan licence are just as important as its protections.
It is not a universal authorization. The licence explicitly does not permit operators to target markets that require their own local licence. Prohibited regions include the UK, France, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, Australia, Austria, USA, and all FATF blacklisted countries. Anjouan Gaming itself has stated that the licence “is not, and has never been presented as, a universal authorization to operate in every country”.
Player protections are weaker than Tier-1 regimes. Key gaps include:
No deposit protection of the kind mandated in Malta or the UK .
No membership in national self-exclusion schemes (e.g., GamStop, Spelpaus).
No comparable player recourse — the ADR requirement is new, and enforcement history is limited.
Lighter AML/KYC enforcement — while rules exist, the supervisory intensity is lower than Tier-1 regulators.
It functions as a stepping-stone licence. Industry analysis positions Anjouan as a jurisdiction for startups validating business models before upgrading to Malta or Curaçao. It is explicitly not suitable for operators targeting UK or EU markets from launch.
Bottom Line for a Player
If you play at an Anjouan-licensed casino, you get:
Basic protections: age verification, self-exclusion tools, responsible gaming policies, and (since 2026) an ADR channel for disputes.
A named legal entity behind the brand, with published terms that an authority can enforce through suspension or revocation .
Legitimacy enough for banking and payment processing to function .
You do not get:
Guaranteed access to dispute resolution equivalent to Malta or the UK.
Deposit protection or national self-exclusion scheme coverage.
Any assurance that the operator is legally allowed to serve players in your jurisdiction.
The licence is real and statutory, but it is a lighter regime. Its value to players is real but limited: it proves the operator is not anonymous and is subject to some enforceable rules — it does not guarantee Tier-1 standards of player protection or legal compliance in your specific country.