PokerStars Casino Says Goodbye To Colombian Gambling Market

PokerStars decided to leave the Colombian gambling market after the official announcement from Coljuegos to block 325 unlicensed online casinos was published. The country’s gambling regulator have also stated that the newly arranged gaming market cannot tolerate online operators without all the necessary approvals and certificates. The casino’s reaction was to inform its local players via email that gambling will no longer be possible at their poker rooms, starting Monday, July 17.

PokerStars has easily become one of the biggest poker companies, although it was severely fined by the US Department of Justice in 2011 for operating within the States. The company was later purchased by Amaya for $5 billion dollars, a Canadian betting giant. It features diverse and amazing titles from some of the greatest software development companies in the world, such as Net Entertainment, IGT, Microgaming, Quickspin, Red Tiger Gaming and Amaya Software.

Colombia is the first Latin American country that has decided to standardize its online gaming market and bring forth some adjustments to the system. The law was presented to the public in 2016, but the first license was issued in June 2017. Local betting website, Aquila Global Group, is among the first license holders.

Due to the new regulatory changes on the market, PokerStars cannot operate legally in the country anymore, unless a new license has been obtained. There are no clear indications at the moment whether the casino will ever come back to Colombia, but considering its immense popularity and potential, it is possible.

Bringing legit online casinos to the country and creating a healthy gambling environment are the main goals of Coljuegos and huge steps like this simply have to be made somewhere.

Source:

“PokerStars Leaves Colombian Online Gambling Market”, casinonewsdaily.com,  July 18, 2017.