Best Online Casinos in Monaco & Gambling Regulations
Taking second place for the smallest country in the world and first place for gambling in Europe, the Principality of Monaco has a long history with the age-old activity. The small city-state is now considered a haven for the wealthy and classy high-stakes casinos. Surrounded by the lush vineyards of southern France on one side and the emerald waters of the Mediterranean on the other, it is easy to see why so many are attracted to this jewel of a city. Unfortunately, some controversy surrounds this as well, due to it often being declared a tax haven for the ultra-rich. In-fact the local Monégasques only make up around 16% of the population with the rest being of various foreign descents.
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While it is actually illegal for Monaco's citizens to gamble, there is no specific law that mentions any online aspects. It is therefore considered as a gray-market where overseas operations are free to offer their services. Online casinos actually create a great solution for local Monégasques who want to gamble, as this circumnavigates the restrictions of physical establishments. You will still have to keep in mind that you will be creating an account from an unregulated market, meaning you won’t be able to take any legal recourse in the possibility of an issue occurring. It is therefore extra important you take precautions before committing any of your personal information and payment details to a certain establishment.
- Is the casino licensed?
- Is the licensing authority in line with EU law?
- Does the site offer French language options?
- Are your preferred payment methods supported?
- Will you be eligible to participate in any promotions?
Asking yourself some questions is a great start to checking the legitimacy and value of a casino. A great way to find answers to these questions is by sticking with us here at GoodLuckMate. Our articles and reviews are written by unbiased industry veterans, whose job it is to keep you informed.
Gambling Regulation
The current gambling regulations can actually be traced all the way back to the late 1800s in the time of Charles III. Seeing that the state was in a financial crisis, Charles applied a complete ban of gambling to locals while encouraging foreigners to come gamble instead. And ever since Monaco has remained a luxury paradise for gamblers around Europe and across the world. There are therefore several historic gambling venues as well as the famous Monte Carlo racetrack that often sees Formula 1 pass through its cityscape course. French horse race betting and lottery tickets are also found around the state under a special stamp duty. While foreign nationals now account for a majority of the population, the law has remained relatively fixed and no new legislation has since been created to account for the online aspect. This essentially means that online operations are unable to establish themselves in Monaco, but residents are still able to access sites set up in jurisdictions abroad.
Localized Online Casinos
The strict regulations in France mean that there is not much incentive for online casinos to provide French localization options. A lot of operations do not target French-speaking players, as the market is simply limited, meaning that many players may have to rely on English language settings. There are however some operations that provide French language options, but they can appear to be far and few between. The good news is that most online casinos are based in Europe, meaning that regional sporting events, European legislation and cultural differences are all accommodated for. This is due to the fact that so many online casinos operate in Malta, just a short trip across the Mediterranean away. As such, Europe has been the largest focus of the vast majority of the online casino industry since the beginning. While new markets are opening up and others are being probed, Europe remains a bastion for online casinos.
Gambling with Euros
Due to the huge saturation of online casinos in Europe, there is little surprise that euros can be found almost everywhere. Along with the benefit of being able to use your local currency at pretty much any establishment, the wide variety of available payment options are also a big advantage. Various payment cards, e-wallets, bank transfer options and other unique payment methods are common features for players using euros. The hardest part is choosing the right method for you. Over recent years more and more players have been choosing to play with cryptocurrencies, which has exploded on the scene. This is especially useful for players whose currencies are not supported, but even people using euros has also chosen this alternative payment method thanks to the enhanced security features found in the technology.
Casinos in Monaco
There are various reputable Monaco casinos that easily make the bucket list of any gambling enthusiast. The first however was established over 100 years ago and its roulette tables still spin to this very day. The Le Grand Casino de Monte Carlo first opened its doors back in 1858 and remains one of the most prestigious casinos in the world. Although Monaco has often been synonymous with gambling, the future of the online side of things might not be so golden. There are suspicions that Monaco may be included in the French jurisdiction, which includes various game restrictions and other limitations for online players and operations. Rather than moving towards forging their own regulated market, it may be that it instead comes under France’s authority that operations sites have found to be too unappetizing to partake in.
Dispute resolution – can I get help from a third party?
A gambling license is intended to protect players, and one of its main functions is to provide a mechanism for resolving disputes when they come up. If you have a dispute with a casino, and the casino is being unreasonable, the gambling authority will help you. For many licenses, this means you can contact the gambling authority to get help processing your withdrawals, claiming money the casino has debited from your account, or resolving other disputes that might arise. The likelihood that the gambling authority will help you in ways that are effective, however, depends on the procedures they have in place for this. This is yet another reason why choosing to play at a casino that has a safe license is important.
Getting help directly from the gambling authority is not always necessary, or even an option. A lot of regulators have now enforced third-party dispute resolution. This means casinos must have an agreement with an arbitrator who will look into disputes on the behalf of players from a particular casino. This ensures your dispute will be reviewed by an objective third party. All trusted online casinos have information about arbitration on their websites if they use this option, or they’ll have the contact information for the gambling authority you should consult. However, you should always try to resolve your issues with the casino first, and a lot of casinos have separate email addresses specifically for handling complaints.
Secure payments – can I trust a casino with my money?
If you’re worried about the security of the transactions you’re making at a casino, you should look for a logo with the acronym PCI DSS. This stands for Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, and this is something the payment industry has created. If you see this logo, it means the casino can be trusted for safe money transactions since they follow all of the rules set by the payment industry. Information about this can also be found in an FAQ section on the casino’s website.
Another thing to look out for in terms of payments is where your money is kept while you play. Some gambling authorities, all of the best ones actually, regulate what the casino can do with your money while they are holding it. Your money shouldn’t go into a general bank account held by the casino; it should go into an account that is strictly for holding player funds. This means that as long as you have the money in your player account, it can’t be spent by the casino. Your deposit will be kept separate from the operating funds of the casino until your player account is empty, which will happen if you make a funds withdrawal or if you lose the money while playing.Fair gaming – do the games give me a fair chance to win?
The best known system tool for ensuring that a casino offers fair games is eCogra; however, there are other providers that also offer these kinds of systems. You want to make sure that the casino is using a certified third-party control system to ensure that the games of chance you’re playing are actually based on chance and not on other types of metrics. Rigged games are ones that have been set up to pay out less than they claim to or ones that give some players a greater chance of winning than others.
The eCogra logo can often be found in the footer of the casino’s website, but not all casinos choose to display it. If you can’t see this logo, go to the FAQs and see if you can find information about random number generators. If there are no FAQs on the site, check out their terms and conditions or contact the casino’s support and ask how they ensure their games are safe.
Encrypted website – how is my information kept safe?
An SSL-encrypted website should be mandatory for any casino, and very few casinos operate without this or similar safe encryption features. Always keep in mind that you are giving the casino quite a bit of sensitive information, including your payment details. When you’re uploading and sending documents to verify your identity, you want to make sure that no unauthorized third-party has access to them. Site security, therefore, doesn’t only include the website itself but also what the casino does on the backend. You should always look into a casino’s data security. You’ll normally find information about this in their terms and conditions and their privacy policy. If in doubt, contact their support and ask for more detailed information.
Most trustworthy casinos have information about site security in the website footer, so simply scroll down and look for the logo of a well-known security system.
Gambling license – can I play at a casino from my country?
The gambling license a casino operates under will have a big impact on your security. Not all licenses are equally safe for players for the simple reason that they are issued by different gambling authorities that work in different ways and have different rules. The rules and regulations may be quite similar, but the way they are enforced is a different story entirely. For example, if a casino doesn’t comply with the regulations, some gambling authorities may just issue a fine while others may revoke the casino’s license outright. How often gambling authorities show up for an unscheduled inspection or control will also vary.
The biggest differences between a safe, high quality gambling license and one that isn’t as good will usually show up in the areas of fair gaming, dispute resolution and the rules and systems for identifying and handling problem gamblers (responsible gambling). If your country of residence has its own gambling authority, playing at casinos that are licensed by them will be the safest option for you. Other international licenses that can be trusted are issued by the Malta Gambling Authority and the Gibraltar Regulatory Authority. Curacao eGaming is getting better at protecting players whereas licenses from Panama and Costa Rica, for instance, are considered less safe. The worst option is obviously a casino with no license whatsoever.
Our casino experts have tried and tested all aspects of each and every casino, so you can feel confident when signing up.
