Crypto casino takings have soared to tens of billions of dollars a year, new data shows, as gamblers bypass blocks in their home countries to bet on unregulated offshore platforms.
Despite being illegal in most countries, wagers paid in cryptocurrency last year generated $81.4bn in gross gaming revenue (GGR), the difference between bets taken in and winnings paid out, according to research by anti-online-crime platform Yield Sec — a fivefold rise since 2022.
“It’s explosive growth everywhere,” said Yield Sec founder Ismail Vali.
While crypto gambling sites are blocked in jurisdictions from the US and China to the EU and UK, they remain easily accessible via VPN, mirror links or URL redirection, experts, campaigners and former users…
