Filenews 2 February 2026 - by Eleftheria Paizanou
The largest source of money at Cypriot casinos comes from players from Israel, Cyprus, Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates. During the discussion of the budget of the National Gaming and Casino Supervision Authority in the parliamentary Finance Committee, the Chairman of the Board of Directors (BoD) of the Authority, Pieris Chouridis, stated that the potential risks for the casinos of the Republic are the operation of the casino-resort in Greece (Elliniko), the casinos in the occupied territories and those in the United Arab Emirates.
At the same time, answering questions from MPs in relation to the influence of the casinos of the Republic by those of the occupied territories, he noted that in Nicosia there is a satellite-type casino, which is of limited size, while in the occupied territories there are 30 casinos and in the next three years another 30 are expected to operate.
According to Hourides, the casino in Nicosia is not large and does not have many gaming tables, pointing out that this may be one of the reasons why some people choose casinos in the occupied territories. The Chairman of the Board of Directors was in favour of the expansion of the casino in Nicosia.
For his part, the Executive Director of the Authority, Haris Tsangarides, said that the casino in Nicosia is small and cannot offer the experience and luxury offered by the resort casino in Limassol. As he said, worldwide the trend in casinos is experience.
Chouridis also referred to the preparation of a bill to change payments, pointing out that "we have made the measurements. The analysis of the casino is good, the analysis of the resort is average. We are only for the casino."
At the same time, the president of the Board referred to the Faros Center, to which people who are addicted to gambling go. He also referred to online casinos, which are growing and, as he said, are illegal. He indicated that the Authority had contacts with companies that have software, which is placed on the mobile phone, as a result of which users cannot play.
"We work with the game line and the addiction line. However, we must have the right trainers and psychologists. We hope to increase the opportunity for those who feel vulnerable to join these programs," he concluded.
