A licence seal is a picture. Pictures copy, and fake seals have become the fastest-growing category of casino fraud precisely because almost nobody clicks them.
Learning to verify a casino licence takes about five minutes, uses only the regulator's own website, and works on any casino you will ever open. Here it is.
Find the Number, Not the Badge
Scroll to the footer and look past the logo for the actual licence number and the name of the company holding it.
Legitimate operators publish both. If a site shows a regulator's badge with no number and no legal entity anywhere on the page, you have already learned something, and you can stop here.
Write down three things: the licence number, the company name, and the domain you are on. Step four needs all three.
Check the Number's Shape First
This is the step most guides skip, and it catches fakes in seconds.
Every regulator issues numbers in a fixed format, and a number that does not match its jurisdiction's shape is wrong before you look it up.
|
Regulator |
Licence number format |
|
Malta Gaming Authority |
MGA/CRP/543/2018 |
|
Curacao Gaming Authority |
CGA/2025/875/1301 or OGL/2024/1585/0822 |
|
Anjouan Gaming |
ALSI-202504011-FI1 |
Those shapes were confirmed against live register entries in July 2026. A footer claiming a Curacao licence while displaying a number in none of those formats has invented it, and no lookup is needed to know that.
Search the Regulator's Own Site
Open the regulator directly. Type the address yourself instead of following the casino's link, because a link you were given can point anywhere.
The four registers you will need most:
-
Malta Gaming Authority publishes its MGA licensee register at mga.org.mt, searchable by company name or licence number, showing status, licence type and the legal entity behind the brand
-
UK Gambling Commission maintains a public register at gamblingcommission.gov.uk, searchable by operator name
-
Curacao Gaming Authority runs the register under the new LOK framework, which as published in July 2026 held around 660 entries with issue and expiry dates, including licences the regulator had revoked
-
Anjouan Gaming publishes a register at anjouangaming.com searchable by licence number, company name or operational domain, returning the holder's registered name, licence number, type as B2C or B2B, and current status
That domain search on the Anjouan register is genuinely useful, because it means you can look up a website directly without needing the company name at all.
Match All Three Details, Not Just One
A number appearing in a register is not the end of the check. Three details have to line up.
The legal entity name in the register must match the company named in the casino's footer and terms. The licence number must match exactly. And the domain you are playing on must appear against that licence, since one company can hold a licence covering some brands and not others.
Mismatches here are how the more sophisticated fakes work. A real licence number belonging to a genuine operator, displayed by a completely different website, passes a lazy check and fails this one.
Two further details worth noticing while you are there: the licence status, since registers record revoked and expired entries as well as active ones, and the expiry date.
Read What That Licence Actually Gives You
A verified licence clears the first hurdle. It does not win the race, and regulator tiers differ enormously.
Strict regulators such as the UK Gambling Commission enforce segregated player funds, independent audits, mandatory responsible-gambling tools and a formal complaints path with real consequences. Credible middle-tier regulators including the Malta Gaming Authority bring segregated funds, audits and a binding dispute process.
Lighter regimes are where most crypto casinos sit. Curacao under the reformed framework has improved considerably, with direct licensing, named beneficial owners and a working complaint channel. Anjouan issues licences more readily and offers thinner recourse. Anjouan's own authority states the point plainly on its register: verification confirms a licence exists and its current status, and does not constitute an endorsement of the holder's services or business practices.
So the honest reading is that a licence tells you a regulator exists to complain to. How much that complaint is worth depends entirely on which regulator, and the differences between offshore regimes are substantial.
Running the Check on a Real Platform
Worth demonstrating instead of describing, and it applies to any site including the ones we write about.
Dexsport publishes an Anjouan licence. You can verify that yourself in under a minute: open the Anjouan Gaming public register, use the domain search, and enter dexsport.io. The register returns the holder's registered name, the licence number, whether it is B2C or B2B, and its current status.
Then apply step five honestly. Anjouan sits in the lighter tier, below Curacao's reformed framework and well below Malta or the UK.
That is a real limitation and it should factor into your decision, alongside the platform's separate CertiK and Pessimistic contract audits, which cover code and not conduct and are a different assurance entirely.
Do the same for every platform you consider. A claim you verified is worth something; a claim you read on a homepage is worth nothing, and how a platform records activity is a separate question from who regulates it.
Five Minutes, Every Time
Find the number. Check its shape. Search the regulator directly. Match entity, number and domain. Then read what that tier actually protects.
Crypto deposits do not reverse, which makes this the least costly insurance available to you and the only one that works before the money moves.
Confirm what is legal where you live, keep stakes within a set budget, and play only if you are of legal age, since KYC or AML checks may apply.
Responsible gambling and licensing connect directly, since strict regulators mandate deposit limits, cooling-off periods and self-exclusion, while lighter regimes leave those tools to the operator's discretion.
Disclaimer: The information here is provided for general purposes only and is not legal, tax, investment, or financial advice. Licence formats, register contents and regulatory frameworks change, so verify current details with the relevant authority directly. A verified licence does not guarantee any particular standard of service. Betting carries risk, and rules vary by country, so check the law where you live. Please gamble responsibly, within your means, and only if you are of legal age.
