Almost every crypto casino shortlists the same two licenses, and the right answer depends on what the operator is optimizing for. Anjouan wins on speed and cost: roughly EUR 18K all-in, issuance in 2 to 6 weeks from a complete file, 0% tax on gross gaming revenue, and a single license covering casino, sportsbook, and lottery.
Curacao under the LOK regime costs less to apply, around EUR 4.6K, but carries annual costs near EUR 24.6K and now real obligations: local substance requirements phase in from January 2026 and a key person requirement lands by April 2027. In exchange, the name recognition is unmatched. Game suppliers, aggregators, and payment providers have onboarded Curacao licensees for two decades, and some conservative counterparties still treat it as the minimum acceptable license.
The practical decision usually reduces to counterparties. An operator running crypto-only rails with original games and crypto-native suppliers rarely needs the Curacao name and banks the Anjouan savings. An operator planning fiat PSPs, mainstream game studios, or aggregator relationships should price the Curacao overhead as the cost of smoother onboarding.
A third pattern is emerging in current engagements: launch on Anjouan for speed, prove the operation, and add Curacao once counterparty requirements justify the annual cost. The structures can be designed from day one so the second license slots into the same corporate stack without reincorporation, an approach covered on our formation page.
Whichever way the decision goes, the corporate structure should be designed around the license conditions before incorporation, not after. Both regimes are quoted fixed in writing on our licensing page, and a full launch sequence is walked through in How to Start a Crypto Casino in 2026.