Updated 15 March 2024: Calls has been made by Bangladeshi legislators, ministers and other officials to ammend the Public Gambling Act of 1897 to better regulate the casino industry in Bangladesh due to the rising popularity of online gambling. Ministers such as Mohammad Ali Miah has been leading the push to update the amendment.
Even as a conservative and religious country, Bangladesh is now entering the gambling world. And it’s not just about having fun, people are making fortunes from gambling. Interestingly, you no longer have to appear physically in a casino. Technology has made things easier for you. If you want to play at an online casino in Dhaka, just grab your gaming device and load the casino site on your gadget’s browser. Another interesting fact is that playing on the go will never be a problem. Most online casinos in Dhaka are optimized to work smoothly on mobile.
Additionally, there are lots of exciting games to play. Once you find the perfect online casino in Dhaka, you’ll have access to a whole catalogue of games. Slots, table games and video poker are some of the meets. Also, lottery games are available as well. Basically, you should never get bored in Dhaka, while you can just access an online casino and play your favourite games.
History of casino in Dhaka
The history of casino in Dhaka is unsurprisingly short. Remember, Bangladesh gained independence in 1973. Before then, it was run by Pakistan which was a part of the British Indian Empire. For this reason, Bangladesh succeeded most of India’s gambling laws. This includes The Public Gambling Act, passed in 1867. However, this act banned physical casinos and gaming houses. There is nothing about online casinos. This shouldn’t come as a surprise since the act itself is so old.
Anyway, The Public Gambling Act became part of the country’s constitution after independence. With time, the authorities modified a few annexes in the act to clarify that lottery isn’t a gambling activity. So, lottery games were permitted. Furthermore, a few rewrites in the constitution allowed bookmakers and horse racing events. This gave people the green light to play lottery games and wager on horse races. With time, more and more gaming houses were established in Dhaka. However, the legality of casino in Dhaka is far much complicated. Read on as we try to explore it more.
The legality of casino in Dhaka
Dhaka, as a city in Bangladesh, revolves around the Islamic religion. As such, all gambling activities apart from horse racing and lottery are prohibited. However, with things happening through the internet, it’s quite difficult for the law to contain people’s desire to gamble. Gamblers are taking different approaches in finding ways to wager without conflicting with the law. And it’s no longer about illegal casinos or underground gaming facilities. Most of them have opted for internet gambling, which offers convenience and flexibility.
Back to the legality, Bangladesh is strictly against any land-based casino. So, any physical casino you might know in Dhaka is illegal. However, the law has created a legal grey area. It doesn’t talk about online casinos. Offshore gambling sites accepting Bangladesh’ gamblers aren’t bound to the country’s laws. For this reason, nobody has ever been punished for gambling online.
Regarding location-based casinos, only lottery rooms are legal in Dhaka. And since people will always try to find their way around the law, the government is always on the watch. In fact, law enforcement agencies do constant raids of all land-based casinos. And if wondering if these laws will ever change, well, don’t raise your hopes. It’s quite unlikely, especially due to the heavy Muslim population.
How to find the best casino in Dhaka
Now that there are no established laws banning online gambling, you can confidently make wagers and win real money. The good news is that there are hundreds of offshore betting sites accepting players from Dhaka. However, not all of them are real, legal and legit. And the worst mistake you can do in online gambling is playing on an illegal gambling site. You’ll not only put your money at risk but also expose yourself to fraudsters. For this reason, you should be keen when finding the best online casino to play at. Here are some tips to help you:
- License and regulation: A valid license is a basic requirement for any online casino. It establishes the casino’s legality and fairness in all its operations. That way, players can be confident when depositing money and making their wagers. Therefore, ensure that a casino has a gaming license before hitting the sign up button.
- Safety and security: Your safety is always paramount. You don’t want to risk your money or personal details falling into the wrong hands. So, you should be certain that your money and all confidential data are always safe. One way to do that is checking whether the casino site uses encryption technology. If not, you may need to reconsider your options.
- User experience: The best online casino in Dhaka should have an easy-to-navigate interface. Plus, all menus should be neatly arranged and well readable. So, you might need to explore the site first before signing up.
- Payment methods: If you intend to play for real money, you should check the available payment methods. Ensure that the banking options are viable in Bangladesh.
Here are some of the top casinos in Dhaka:
- Mega Casino World
Mega Casino World is an exclusive Dhaka online casino which caters to the needs of Bangladesh players mainly. At this online casino, players can enjoy a wide variety of betting products. These largely relate to casino games talk of live casino games as well as poker. There are also numerous online slot machines that players can enjoy which cover different themes. Players who choose to settle at this online casino are guaranteed to benefit from a whole host of bonus and promotional perks. The welcome bonus comes in the form of a 100 per cent match bonus of up to 100 rupees.
- Bet365
Bet365 is predominantly a sports betting platform that allows punters to place bets on a wide variety of sports including the popular sports in Bangladesh. Sports punters based in Bangladesh ought to note that Bet365 is their Mecca when it comes to all things gaming. Though specializing in sports betting, Bet365 also does offer some casino games. The majority of these are online slots as well as live casino games. Whether one is a casino player or sports punter, they first need to register an account and load some funds first before they can enjoy their favourite pastime. The registration process is quite simple and the banking methods supported for deposits are varied ranging from Bank Wire Transfer, Paysafe Card, Astropay, Neteller, Skrill, Maestro, MasterCard and Visa.
- 1xBet
1xBet ranks as one of the most popular online casinos in Bangladesh. The popularity of 1xBet largely stems from the fact that this online casino listens to the needs of Bangladesh players and proceeds to offer exactly what the Bangladesh players want. Just to put this into perspective, Bangladesh players for long have longed for an online casino that supports the local Bengali language. 1xBet listened to the demands and it now offers Bengali as one of the supported languages! Other great aspects of 1xBet that have enabled this casino to endear itself with casino players is the wide variety of oriental themed games, presence of lucrative bonus rounds, highly responsive customer support platforms as well as the support of multiplicities of banking methods including both conventional banking methods as well as digital (cryptocurrency) banking methods.
- Betway
Betway is a world renowned brand in the online casino and sports betting industry. Having officially launched all the way back in 2002, Betway has managed to spread its wings to all corners of the world including Bangladesh. At Betway, Bangladesh folks are guaranteed the opportunity to enjoy both casino games as well as sports betting services. In Bangladesh, Betway is largely favoured for its mobile app which offers a smooth and user friendly interface. Players who love playing on the go therefore find Betway to be quite a great proposition.
- Megapari
Megapari is quite a popular online sportsbook in Bangladesh. On a daily basis, thousands visit Megapari with the sole intention of taking advantage of the sportsbook’s highly competitive odds. More and more players also join the sportsbook on a frequent basis largely influenced by the sumptuous welcome bonus offer the sportsbook offers. This welcome bonus offer comes in the form of a 100 per cent match bonus of up to 13,000 rupees! In addition to accepting conventional currency payments, Megapari also accepts cryptocurrencies. Players need not worry about their safety and security while at Megapari as the online sportsbook is regulated and licensed by Curacao eGaming. The site also uses SSL bit encryption technology to further protect all of its players.
In order to come up with our list of the top 5 online casinos in Bangladesh, we looked at various parameters. The online casinos that made our list satisfied all of the parameters. Some of the major parameters that were checked include: presence of a wide variety of gambling products, presence of numerous banking methods for the convenience of players, presence of bonus and promotional perks, level of responsiveness of the customer support agents as well as the safety and security measures/protocols of the sites.
Variety of real money games in Dhaka
Top online casinos in Dhaka offer a wide range of games to play for real money. Global classics such as slots and roulette are all available on the site. Besides, you can play hundreds of table games in a live dealer studio. Interestingly, most of these games play out on both mobile gadgets and PCs. Some of the most loved real money games in Dhaka include:
- Online slots
- Table games – roulette, blackjack and baccarat.
- Lottery – keno and bingo
The final thoughts To conclude, physical casinos in Dhaka are illegal. However, this doesn’t mean you won’t find gaming rooms in the city. They are several, only that their business is illegal. This means that if you are caught making wagers in these casinos, you may be punished. But if you opt for online gambling, you may be safe. There are no laws banning internet gaming in the city. So, you can register at any available casino site and have fun.
