How online casino VIP programmes work, and why regulators restrict them
A casino VIP programme rewards the customers who spend and lose the most, with personal account managers, tailored bonuses, gifts and hospitality. In Britain, regulators linked these schemes to dozens of enforcement cases and in 2020 forced casinos to check that a VIP could afford what they spent. In Malaysia no regulator checks anything, because no online casino is licensed here.
What a VIP programme is
Almost every online casino that markets to Malaysians advertises a VIP or loyalty programme, usually as a ladder of tiers with names like Silver, Gold and Diamond. You climb by depositing or betting more. The UK Gambling Commission, which has studied these schemes more closely than any other regulator, describes what they typically offer: personal account management or a dedicated point of contact, individual bonuses, benefits or gifts, and invitations to hospitality, events or dinners [1].
The business logic is simple. A small number of customers provide most of a casino's income. A study of 139,152 British online gambling accounts, commissioned by the charity GambleAware and published in 2021, found that the 5% of accounts with the biggest losses generated at least 70% of operators' gross gambling yield in betting, online casino, live casino and slots [5]. A VIP programme is designed to keep those customers playing, and playing with that operator.
Why regulators became worried
The people a VIP scheme rewards most are, by definition, the ones losing the most money. In January 2020 the UK Gambling Commission said its casework had found that "the approach of some licensees has exacerbated at-risk behaviour" [2]. Its 2025 review counted 46 enforcement cases in which VIP schemes were a possible contributing factor: 11 in 2018, 33 in 2019, and only two after the 2020 rules took effect [1].
Three British cases show the pattern:
- Betway, March 2020, £11.6 million. No source-of-funds checks were made on a VIP customer who deposited more than £8 million and lost more than £4 million over four years. The regulator said the operator had shown "little regard for the welfare of its VIP customers" [3].
- Caesars Entertainment, April 2020, £13 million. One customer at its land-based casinos was allowed to lose £1.6 million in three months without proper checks on where the money came from [3].
- Ladbrokes Coral, July 2019, £5.9 million. One customer spent £1.5 million over almost three years without being asked for proof of source of funds, including losing £64,000 in a single month [3].
What Britain changed in 2020
On 30 September 2020 the UK Gambling Commission announced new rules that took effect at the end of October that year [2]. Before a licensed operator may treat someone as a VIP, it must establish that their spending is affordable and sustainable as part of their leisure spending, assess whether there is evidence of gambling harm or vulnerability, and hold up-to-date evidence of the customer's identity, occupation and source of funds. A senior manager holding a personal licence must oversee each scheme, the people deciding who qualifies must be separate from the relationship managers, and incentives must be paused while signs of harm are looked into. The regulator warned operators it would ban such schemes outright if things did not improve.
The effect was large. By the regulator's 2025 count, VIP members at the operators it monitored fell from 42,349 before the rules to 1,616 in 2023 to 2024, and VIP schemes made up about 3% of those operators' gambling revenue [1]. Most online operators in Britain have largely moved away from VIP schemes.
Other regulators
The Dutch regulator, the Kansspelautoriteit, ruled in February 2024 that any bonus linked in any way to a player's losses is prohibited, and it treats loyalty and savings programmes as bonuses [4]. Its rules also bar bonuses aimed at young adults up to 24 and bonuses offered during play. In Ontario, the regulator has banned public advertising of inducements, bonuses and credits since April 2022 and has fined operators for breaking that rule [4].
Rewards paid on losses are common on sites aimed at Malaysia. Four of the five Malaysia-built brands we checked, BK8, me88, 96M and 12Play, advertised a weekly "rescue" bonus or similar reward calculated from a player's net losses. That is exactly the kind of loss-linked reward the Dutch rules prohibit. It encourages a player to keep going after losing, because losing is what earns the reward.
What this means in Malaysia
None of these protections reaches a player in Malaysia. No online casino is licensed here, so no Malaysian regulator checks whether a VIP's spending is affordable, whether an account manager is pushing a struggling customer, or whether a promised reward will be paid. Our guide to online gambling law in Malaysia explains the legal position. The government has said the current law, the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953, is not adequate for online gambling, and in February 2026 the Deputy Prime Minister said a new law was being drafted [6].
A VIP tier also does nothing to make a site more trustworthy. On the brand pages in our top 10 VIP online casino checks, most of the brands built for Malaysia name no operating company and give no licence number we could match to a register. Police cases reported in 2025 described gambling syndicates using Telegram and WhatsApp for promotions and for moving money through overseas bank accounts [7]. A personal "VIP manager" who contacts you on a messaging app and asks you to pay into a personal bank account is a warning sign, not a perk; our scam warning signs checklist explains why.
Signs a VIP scheme is working on you
Regulators' cases point to the same signs. Rewards arrive after you lose, not after you win. An account manager contacts you when you stop playing. Your tier depends on how much you deposit. Gifts and invitations make it feel awkward to walk away. If any of that sounds familiar, the free, confidential services on our gambling help in Malaysia page can help, and you do not need to be in crisis to call them.
Sources
- UK Gambling Commission, "High value customer and VIP scheme monitoring", 17 Jul 2025. gamblingcommission.gov.uk. Checked 29 Oct 2026.
- UK Gambling Commission, "Gambling Commission sets the industry tough challenges", 17 Jan 2020 gamblingcommission.gov.uk; new rules on VIP customers, 30 Sep 2020 gamblingcommission.gov.uk; and the consultation response on high value customers gamblingcommission.gov.uk. Checked 29 Oct 2026.
- UK Gambling Commission enforcement statements: Betway, 12 Mar 2020 gamblingcommission.gov.uk; Caesars Entertainment, 2 Apr 2020 gamblingcommission.gov.uk; Ladbrokes Coral, 31 Jul 2019 gamblingcommission.gov.uk. Checked 29 Oct 2026.
- Kansspelautoriteit, investigation outcome on loss-linked bonuses, 1 Feb 2024 kansspelautoriteit.nl, and bonus requirements kansspelautoriteit.nl; AGCO, advertising and inducement rules, 16 Mar 2022 agco.ca. Checked 29 Oct 2026.
- University of Liverpool, report on the Patterns of Play study of 139,152 online gambling accounts, 12 Mar 2021. news.liverpool.ac.uk. Checked 29 Oct 2026.
- "New law being drafted to curb online gambling", Free Malaysia Today, 15 Feb 2026. freemalaysiatoday.com. Checked 29 Oct 2026.
- The Vibes, report on an online gambling syndicate in Kuala Lumpur, 12 Oct 2025 thevibes.com; and The Sun, report on a Sungai Buloh online gambling syndicate, 2025 thesun.my. Checked 29 Oct 2026.
Questions readers ask
What is an online casino VIP programme?
It is a scheme that gives extra rewards to a casino's highest-spending customers. The UK Gambling Commission describes typical features as personal account management or a dedicated contact, individual bonuses, benefits or gifts, and invitations to hospitality, events or dinners.
Why do regulators restrict casino VIP schemes?
Because the customers they target are often the ones most at risk. In 2020 the UK Gambling Commission said casework showed some operators had made at-risk behaviour worse, and its 2025 review counted 46 enforcement cases between 2018 and 2023 in which VIP schemes were a possible contributing factor.
What did the UK change about VIP schemes in 2020?
From the end of October 2020, a UK-licensed operator must establish that a customer's spending is affordable and sustainable, check for signs of gambling harm, and hold up-to-date evidence of identity, occupation and source of funds before treating them as a VIP. A senior licensed manager must oversee the scheme.
Is a casino VIP programme safer or legal in Malaysia?
No. VIP status does not make online gambling legal in Malaysia, where no online casino is licensed and online gambling is an offence in Peninsular Malaysia under the Common Gaming Houses Act 1953. No Malaysian regulator checks how any casino treats its VIP customers.