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Cambodia to Suspend Casino-Streamed Online Gambling From October 2026 Amid Scam Crackdown

September 13, 2026By Baccarat.gg Staff

Cambodia will suspend online gambling operations streamed from licensed casinos starting October 2026, part of an anti-scam campaign that has closed 605 sites and revoked or suspended dozens of casino licences.

At a Glance

  • Suspension announced September 5, 2026 by Deputy PM and Interior Minister Sar Sokha; effective October 2026
  • 751 suspected scam locations investigated and 605 closed, July 2025–July 31, 2026 (AKP)
  • All 195 licensed casinos investigated; 20 licences revoked and 29 suspended through July 31, 2026 (AKP)
  • 21,666 foreign nationals from 38 countries repatriated; anti-scam law promulgated April 2026

Cambodia will suspend online gambling operations streamed from licensed casinos beginning in October 2026, a decision attributed to Prime Minister Hun Manet and announced publicly by Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sar Sokha on September 5, 2026 (World Casino Directory, September 2026).

Officials said livestreamed casino gambling had made it difficult to monitor and control the movement of funds whose origins could not be verified, and to prevent technology-enabled crime (Khmer Times, via iGaming Expert, 2026).

Part of a Much Larger Campaign

The suspension is one strand of a sweeping anti-scam campaign. According to the state news agency Agence Kampuchea Presse, authorities investigated 751 suspected scam locations and closed 605 of them between July 2025 and July 31, 2026, and investigated all 195 licensed casinos in the country. Enforcement led to 20 casino licences being revoked and 29 suspended over that period, with 23 more expired, and to the repatriation of 21,666 foreign nationals from 38 countries (AKP, August 18, 2026). A Law on Combating Technology-enabled Scams was promulgated in April 2026.

Figures differ by cut-off date: a later official tally through August 31, 2026 reported 18 licences revoked and 9 suspended, and a different count of scam sites. This article uses the AKP figures as the anchor.

What It Means for Live Baccarat

Cambodian casino venues had for years hosted live-dealer baccarat streamed to players across Asia. The suspension — following the Philippines' permanent ban on offshore gaming operators in October 2025 — further contracts the grey-market live-baccarat supply across Southeast Asia.

The exact effective day in October and the date of the underlying prime-ministerial order had not been published at the time of writing.

Why It Matters for Baccarat Players

Two of Southeast Asia's largest sources of grey-market live baccarat have been switched off within a year. Regulated studios — in Europe, the regulated US states, and now the UAE — are where live baccarat supply is consolidating, and where players can be confident the table they see is licensed.

Sources

Editor's note: Casino-licence and scam-site tallies conflict across official statements with different cut-off dates; the discrepancy is noted in the article.