Oh the Caribbean. Land of beautiful beaches, laissez faire banks, and laid-back residents. Right? Well, you may want to slow your assumption roll, because word on the street is that entrepreneurs in Antigua and Barbuda are ready to show the world some true West Indian chutzpah, in the form of geopolitical sanctions over online gambling regulations.

Caribbean Officials Want Online Gambling

“Absent a reversal of the U.S. government’s illegal blockade of legitimate commerce from our nation, Antigua is prepared to explore the right to exact sanctions on industries in the U.S.,” a Caribbean official warned in a statement to The Associated Press, though, he didn’t provide any details.

At this year’s Online Gaming Conference at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, the Antiguan Minister of Finance, Harold Lovell, made it clear that he’s ready to play ball with U.S. officials when it comes to online gambling.

Lovell spoke passionately about the 2007 World Trade Organization suit between Antigua and the United States, the result of which was supposed to mark the end of online payment processing restrictions. “Antigua is prepared to explore the right to exact sanctions on industries in the U.S.”Yet, at the time of this writing, nothing has changed. The United Kingdom, Lovell reminded, complied with the ruling, thereby allowing Antiguan businesses to operate poker and other online gambling sites, with oversight.

At the gathering, Lovell spoke effusively about the WTO ruling, which accused the United States of improperly banning banks and credit card companies from processing gambling payments. He also railed on the ostensible hypocrisy of the Wire Act.

Delaware Online Gambling Update

In other online gambling news, Delaware is now poised to become America’s online gambling haven. Since the federal online gambling bill, is currently in a holding pattern, Delaware was able to go ahead with their new pro-Internet gambling legislation.

If you run an online gambling website and need the consult of an Internet lawyer, contact Kelly / Warner Law today. We’re both lawyers and online business owners; we’ve worked with innovative companies from around the world; and perhaps most importantly, we understand how to work with international statutes.