How casinos are regulated, cash transactions over €10,000 – and the major misconception

Casinos in Cyprus operate under a strict supervisory and regulatory framework that makes any kind of illegal financial activity by visitors – including money laundering – extremely difficult. At the same time, the casinos’ operator is also obliged to implement rigorous control mechanisms, thereby minimising – if not entirely eliminating – the risk of such incidents occurring.

The concern that some visitors might attempt to “use” the casinos to funnel money is the main reason why a number of MPs oppose exempting casinos from a law the House passed last December banning cash transactions over €10,000.

• Read more: The restriction on cash transactions for amounts over €10,000 and why the casino should be exempt

However, this concern is largely based on misconceptions and a lack of understanding of how the casinos – that is, the City of Dreams Mediterranean casino resort and three satellite casinos – work. And without taking into account that the casinos are overseen by the Cyprus Gaming and Casino Supervision Commission.

Thorough and meticulous compliance procedures

The Commission monitors all transactions 24/7, with compliance procedures that are thorough and meticulous, similar to those applied in the banking sector, requiring bank statements, tax documents, or other proof of source of funds before allowing customers to proceed with a cash transaction.

Since the casino's top visitors come primarily from Arab countries and Israel, all are required to submit the necessary documents and certificates to verify the origin of the funds used, as well as the source of income and overall wealth.

Among the documents requested are their tax and salary information. It is worth noting that these checks are carried out before the money even enters the casino.

As is evident from the above, the detailed checks – combined with the round-the-clock presence of the Cyprus Gaming and Casino Supervision Commission – make it extremely difficult for anyone to bypass the control system and end up at the Unit for Combating Money Laundering and Financial Intelligence Unit of Cyprus (MOKAS).

The major misconception about millions in cash transactions

At the same time, claims of millions in cash transactions at the casino are exaggerated and completely disconnected from reality.

As industry insiders clarify, these transactions reflect the turnover (volume of activity), not the actual amounts of cash entering the casino.

They explain that, for instance, a player might start by exchanging €500 for chips and place bets of €25 over several rounds—winning, losing, winning, losing… Eventually, they might cash out their remaining chips, move to another table, and repeat the process.

Each of these actions is recorded as a cash transaction by the casino, which explains why the volume appears so high. The same applies to slot machines, where the average return to player is 94–96%, but every spin is counted toward the casino’s turnover.

Based on the above, it becomes clear that reports of cash transactions exceeding €10,000 totalling around €240 million in 2024 – and their use as a key argument against exempting the casino from the cash transaction limit introduced by Parliament last December – do not reflect the real picture.

It’s also worth noting that the transaction limit is cumulative over a 24-hour period. This means that a visitor entering the casino with €1,000 and moving between tables, cashing in and out multiple times, can easily reach the €10,000 threshold.

The new law’s restriction also applies to payouts, forcing winners who play with cash to accept bank checks for amounts over €10,000; something that does not happen in other European casinos, and which, inevitably, will drive tourists to other destinations.

This must be corrected

In light of all the above, it becomes clear that exempting casinos from the restriction on cash transactions over €10,000 – as proposed in the relevant amendment expected to be put to a vote in Parliament’s plenary session this afternoon – will by no means lead to the issues that have raised concerns.

On the contrary, it is a necessary corrective measure that must be taken to eliminate the unfair competition casinos in Cyprus have faced since last December from other casinos, and to address—while there is still time—the risk of losing customers to the occupied areas.

This concern, in fact, was highlighted in dramatic terms during the prior discussions in the Parliamentary Committee on Institutions, particularly by the representative of the Deputy Ministry of Tourism.