Following the indictment of Poker Stars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker on the 15th of April 2011, all remaining Microgaming casinos have completely shut their doors to American casino players. In October 2006, UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) was passed meaning that it became illegal in the USA for the transfer of funds from any US financial institution to an online gambling website (this didn’t include US based websites for state-run lotteries and horse racing).
Many online casinos and gambling operators ceased offering their services to American players immediately after UIGEA was passed but some continued to take players from states where the laws were unclear. Some Microgaming powered groups stopped taking new players but allowed existing customers to continue playing.
Since the Black Friday announcement, Microgaming has shut its doors completely to the US meaning that existing customers cannot play any more at the accepting Microgaming properties. There has been no official announcement from Microgaming whatsoever but casino players have been quick to post the news on various player forums.
Existing US players are obviously frustrated due to the fact that they will have to wait till the online casinos find a way to process their withdrawals. The Microgaming casinos affected have been names as 7 Sultans, Platinum Play, Royal Vegas, Vegas Palms, All Jackpots, All Slots, Villento, Rich Reels, River Belle and Maple Casino.
You should also know that none of the Microgaming-powered casinos on Casino Manual have been affected as they didn’t accept US players from the beginning due to the grey area surrounding online gaming in America. 32Red Casino and Roxy Palace Casino are very reputable operators who have always abided by the various laws in different jurisdictions. To read more about Microgaming, please see our review by clicking here.