Curaçao PM takes control of gaming body as board resigns
Curaçao’s Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas (as depicted in the featured image) has allegedly taken direct oversight of the island’s gambling regulator after the entire supervisory board of the Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA) resigned abruptly in mid-September.
The resignations of commissioners Shelwyn Salesia, Robert Reijnaert, and Ildefons Simon have left the newly established regulator without a supervisory board, just months after it began operating under the country’s modernised gambling framework.
According to local media reports, Prime Minister Pisas met with the CGA’s management soon after the departures to discuss the state of the gambling sector. However, Finance Minister Javier Silvania, under whose ministry the CGA officially falls, did not attend the meeting. Instead, government adviser Caryl Monte attended the meeting.
Reform agency in limbo
For the unaware, the CGA is the central authority created under the Landsverordening op de Kansspelen (LOK), Curaçao’s new gambling law, adopted in December 2024 to replace the former Gaming Control Board (GCB). The new framework aims to overhaul the island’s licencing system, phase out the master and sub-licence model, and require all operators to apply directly for new licences under tighter supervision.
While the CGA’s role as regulator was clarified and expanded from July 2025, the reform process has faced repeated delays and administrative backlogs. Opposition figures and local media have accused the Finance Ministry of inconsistent provisional licencing and inflated staffing figures, though no official investigation has confirmed these claims.
The sudden exits from the CGA board have raised questions about how the LOK’s rollout will proceed. With no replacements yet announced, the regulator is currently functioning without its top layer of oversight. It is an unusual situation for an agency tasked with enforcing transparency and compliance in one of the island’s most profitable industries. The gambling industry has long been described as one of Curaçao’s key revenue sources, contributing an estimated €20–€30 million annually to public finances, according to previous government projections.
Political upheaval to blame?
The reasons behind the resignations remain unclear, but analysts point to growing political tension within the ruling MFK party, where Finance Minister Silvania has faced criticism and pressure following public disputes and charges of power misuse. Just a few days ago, the opposition party PAR called on both the Public Prosecution Service and Parliament to act immediately in a separate controversy involving Minister Silvania and tax office head Alfonso Trona.
Curaçao’s online gambling sector, once known for its permissive master-licence model, has come under international scrutiny for weak anti-money laundering controls and minimal player protection. The LOK reforms were supposed to fix these problems and create a regulatory system that people could actually take seriously—one with proper transparency and credibility.
While there’s been no official confirmation linking these allegations to the board’s resignation, analysts still believe that political tensions, increased regulatory scrutiny, and heightened public attention may have played a role in the crisis. With the reports that the Prime Minister is directly overseeing the CGA, the big question is whether these reforms will actually happen or if Curaçao’s move toward becoming a legitimate, transparent gaming hub is just going to get delayed again.
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