Online casinos closing business to South Africa
Posted on: August 31st, 2010 7:25 am | By: Jeremy SchruteAs a result of a legal decision, online casinos are now closing their doors to South African customers. Yesterday, Silver Sands Online Casino announced that they will not allow South African citizens to gamble on their website. In their statement, the online casino, which is based in South Africa, said that they have “made the decision to exclude South African players from participating in our games until there is more clarity regarding the legality of gaming in cyberspace for South African citizens.”
Silver Sands is the second South African online casino to make that move. After initially standing in defiance against the legal decision banning online gambling, Piggs Peak online casino, also based in South Africa, announced that they would temporarily stop online gambling in South Africa until their appeal is heard and a decision made.
Though South African customers can no longer play any games on Silver Sands Online Casino, management stresses that the players accounts “will remain accessible” and the players “may request a withdrawal” at any time. A similar statement was released by Piggs Peak, who is still legally operating their brick and mortar casino in the nation.
All of this stems from an August 20 ruling by the North Gauteng High Court that it is illegal to gamble online in the country, a decision that has been praised by the Gauteng Gambling Board but is being appealed by Piggs Peak.
By sheer coincidence, outlawing online gambling in South Africa would eliminate the only competition for the GGB, who runs all gambling operations in the nation. I’m sure that had nothing to do with the ruling, though.
Tags: Gauteng Gambling Board, North Gauteng High Court, online casino, online gambling, online gambling ban, online gambling laws, Piggs Peak online casino, Silver Sands Online Casino, South Africa online casinos, South Africa online gambling
