Equatorial Guinea Forays into the World of Online Gaming

Equatorial Guinea has become Africa’s latest regulated iGaming market, opening the door to a whole new world of entertainment. The country has just issued its master license, making online gaming an indisputable reality.

Mascott Capital Partners Secures Master License

Located on the western shores of central Africa and boasting a population of under 2 million people, Equatorial Guinea is a former Spanish colony that declared its independence in 1968.

The country’s path to regulated online gaming was laid down during the 2017 regulatory reforms, which allowed Antonio-Pedro Oliveira Burupu, Equatorial Guinea’s Minister of Tourism and Tourism Infrastructure, to award the first online gaming master license.

The online gaming master license in question was issued to Mascott Capital Partners, a Cyprus-based licensing firm. Under the master license, Mascott Capital Partners will become responsible for issuing other licenses and ensuring licensees’ compliance with the local rules.

Operators that wish to target Equatorial Guinea’s online gambling space would have to work with the Cyprus-based company and make sure they follow its regulatory requirements concerning age verification, safer gambling, and AML efforts.

The Government Counts on iGaming to Diversify Its Economy

The government welcomed Mascott on board and celebrated the licensing of the country’s first legal online operator as a pivotal moment.

Minister Burupu commented:

The launch of online gaming, online betting, and online casinos in Equatorial Guinea is one of the most significant measures taken by gaming regulators in the country’s history and Mascott Capital Partners’ digital platform will assist in submitting online gaming license applications.

Antonio-Pedro Oliveira Burupu

Burupu added that the license will cement the country as a recognized online gaming market, potentially attracting more operators. He further argued that online gaming will be important to diversifying the country’s economy and attracting international investment in its digital sector.

With this, Equatorial Guinea hopes to become a reliable gaming licensing hub, not unlike Curaçao and Anjouan.