For centuries, games of chance have been one of the favorite ways for people in Singapore to entertain themselves. The long tradition of gambling in this area is still very much alive nowadays, especially since this city-state gained its independence.
When it comes to online gambling, the situation is a bit trickier. Although Singaporeans, especially the younger generation, are very interested in online gambling, wagering on the internet is, for the most part, forbidden in this state. Since the Remote Gambling Act regulating online gambling was put into effect in 2014, the only way to legally bet online is at two state-sanctioned betting sites: Singapore Pools and Singapore Turf Club.
Furthermore, all sorts of online gambling, except betting on sports and taking part in the state lottery, are strictly banned. The breach of the RGA act carries a penalty of up to $5.000 for players and up to $500.000 and seven years in jail for illegal online gambling operators.
However, as is the case in most countries, players have found ways to go around these regulations. The real-life situation differs a lot from what is written in the law and many players are using foreign-based casino sites to do their wagering. Betting at those sites from your own home is considered a private activity and can not be punished by law. In an effort to fight this situation, the government, with the support of local ISP providers, has blocked plenty of online betting platforms registered overseas, but most players use VPNs and proxies to register and play.
The local currency, the Singapore dollar (SGD), is rarely accepted in the foreign-based casinos, but there are plenty of other options available to Singaporean players. Besides, the Association of Banks in Singapore doesn’t allow depositing to online casinos from bank accounts or credit and debit cards, so the customers from Singapore are anyhow forced to use other methods of payment. The most popular way to make transactions is by using eWallets such as Skrill or Netteler. Lately, with the rise of the popularity of digital currencies, more and more players are making their deposits and withdrawals using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
With all said above, there are still plenty of places players from Singapore can gamble online. Although some gaming content providers and software developers have made their product unavailable to unregulated markets, there are still many others who do not implement these sorts of restrictions. At the moment, there are over 500 online casino brands accepting Singaporean players, but certainly, some caution is needed when choosing your spot for online gaming. Below is a list of some trustworthy online casinos that are open to customers from Singapore.