You cannot open an account here from New Zealand. If you are here because you remember the brand, hold an old account, or have found a site using the name, the important parts are below.
One thing needs correcting first, because it is widely got wrong.
What actually happened
You cannot open an account from New Zealand
But “permanently closed” is not accurate either — here is the actual position
Royal Panda withdrew from the British market on 31 January 2020, when its parent company let the UK licence lapse as part of a portfolio consolidation. It has not served British players since, and it does not serve New Zealand.
Many sources describe the brand as permanently closed. That describes the UK exit, not the brand. It relaunched in Canada in 2022 as a locally regulated operator and continues to trade there.
| Launched | 2014, in Malta, as an independent brand |
| Acquired | 24 October 2017 by LeoVegas, for around €60 million |
| UK closure | 31 January 2020 — new players stopped 8 January, deposits 20 January, accounts closed 31 January. The UK licence lapsed at that date. |
| Relaunched | 2022, in Ontario, under an iGaming Ontario licence — still a LeoVegas brand |
| Current owner | MGM Resorts International, which acquired LeoVegas in September 2022 |
| Available to New Zealanders | No |
The UK closure was handled properly
Players were given three weeks’ notice and told to withdraw. Anyone who did not withdraw in time had their balance returned automatically to the payment method on record, and the operator contacted those it could not pay directly to arrange something else.
It was a commercial decision, not a regulatory one. The brand underperformed against its sister casinos and was retired from that market as the group consolidated. No enforcement action caused it, and the brand did not disappear owing anyone money.
Why the distinction matters. “Permanently closed” and “not available where you are” call for different things. The first suggests a name nobody can use; the second means a live, licensed casino you specifically cannot join — and any bonus or promotion you see advertised for it is aimed at somebody else.
Our LeoVegas review covers the parent brand and its current position.
If you find a site using this name
If you find a gambling site using a name you remember
Three checks, two minutes, and they work on any casino
When a well-known gambling brand leaves a market, its domain keeps its search rankings and its inbound links for years. That makes it valuable — and retired gambling domains are routinely bought and put back into service by unrelated operators, or kept in service by the original owner for a different market entirely.
Both happen. Neither is something you can tell by looking at the logo.
| 1 | Find the operating company and licence number in the footer. Every licensed site must publish them. If they are absent, stop there. |
| 2 | Search that company name on the regulator’s own register — the Malta Gaming Authority, the Gambling Commission of Great Britain, the Curaçao Gaming Control Board, or whichever it names. Not on a review site, and not on a page the casino links you to. |
| 3 | Check the licence is active and that the brand you are looking at is listed under it, and that it covers your country. A licence held by a different company, or one that does not name the site, or one that covers a market you are not in, is not a licence for you. |
Two ways a familiar name misleads
The site is a different business now. A repurposed domain trades entirely on the memory of the old one. None of the licensing, ownership or track record in an older review applies to it.
Or it is the same business, licensed for somewhere else. A casino operating lawfully in one country under a local licence is not thereby available, or lawful, or covered by any regulator, where you are. The licence you can rely on is the one that covers your own jurisdiction — and for New Zealand, no online casino holds one yet.
This applies to any casino name you remember from years ago. Brands in this industry close, get sold, relaunch in new markets and get revived by unrelated companies more often than in almost any other sector.
A familiar name is not evidence of anything. The register is.
If you had an account
If you had an account
Old balances, and one thing that matters more
If you think money was left behind
Balances were returned automatically to the payment method on record at the market closure, so in most cases there is nothing outstanding.
If you believe yours was not returned, contact the parent group rather than the brand. The operating company still exists and still runs casinos, including this one in other markets. Take the account email address, any transaction records you still have, and the approximate closing balance — and do it in writing, so there is a record.
The one that matters most — self-exclusion
If you self-excluded from this casino, do not assume that exclusion still protects you.
An exclusion held on a brand’s systems in one market may not carry to that brand in another, may not carry to the group’s other casinos, and certainly does not extend to any unrelated operator using a similar name.
An exclusion that quietly stopped working is worse than no exclusion, because you may be relying on it.
Two protections that do not depend on any one casino
A gambling block through your bank. Most major New Zealand banks can decline gambling transactions on your accounts. It applies to every merchant at once, it survives any casino closing or relaunching, and it usually takes a couple of taps in your banking app. Most build in a delay before it can be lifted, which is the point of it.
Blocking software on your devices. Free tools run by registered charities block thousands of gambling sites across every device you install them on, including newly launched and repurposed domains. That is the only protection that covers a site nobody has heard of yet.
Free, confidential support is available in New Zealand at any hour. The Gambling Helpline is on 0800 654 655 or free text 8006, and PGF Services on 0800 664 262. Neither requires you to be in crisis, and both will talk through practical options including exclusions and blocks.
If you self-excluded from this casino, do not assume that exclusion still protects you.
Our self-exclusion guide covers both.
What happened, briefly
Royal Panda launched in 2014 and built a genuine following — a friendly identity, a well-curated game library, and a reputation for clear terms. It was good enough that LeoVegas bought it in October 2017 for around €60 million.
It never performed as hoped in Britain. By late 2019 the parent group had concluded it was losing ground to its own sister brands, and in January 2020 the UK operation was wound down. The group kept its flagship name and the other casinos in its portfolio.
The brand itself survived. It returned in Ontario in 2022 under provincial regulation, and remains part of the group — which MGM Resorts International acquired later that year.
None of which makes it available here. New Zealand has no online casino licensing register yet, this brand is not licensed for this market, and a licence issued in Ontario has no application in Aotearoa.
Where this sits in 2026
Online casino gambling in New Zealand is governed by the Online Casino Gambling Act 2026, in force since 1 May 2026, with regulations following on 3 July.
Expressions of interest opened on 17 July 2026 with a NZ$19,000 fee, followed by an auction and full applications, for up to fifteen licences — one brand each, and no operator may hold more than three. From 1 December 2026, operators that have not entered the process must stop serving New Zealanders, with penalties up to NZ$5 million; those that applied may continue until their application is decided or 1 July 2027.
From 2027 there will be a public register of licensed operators. That register will make this kind of question answerable in one search. Until it exists, the footer-and-register check above is the only reliable method.
Our New Zealand gambling laws guide sets out the timetable, and our best online casinos page covers what is currently available here.
Getting help
Free, confidential support is available in New Zealand at any hour: the Gambling Helpline on 0800 654 655 or free text 8006, and PGF Services on 0800 664 262. Neither requires you to be in crisis.
You must be 18 or older to gamble online in New Zealand.
Disclaimer
This page is published for information. It is not financial, legal or gambling advice, and nothing on it is a recommendation to gamble or an endorsement of any operator. You must be 18 or older to gamble online in New Zealand.
This brand is not available to New Zealand players, and nothing here is an invitation to seek a way around that. The page exists so that anyone who remembers the brand, holds an old account, or encounters a site using the name has accurate information about its status.
Market availability, ownership, licensing and domain control all change. A brand’s status in one country says nothing about its status in another, and a licence that covers one market does not extend to New Zealand. Confirm the operating company and licence in the footer of any site you are actually looking at, on the relevant regulator’s own register, before doing anything else.
Gambling costs money over time by design. Free, confidential support is available in New Zealand 24 hours a day on 0800 654 655, or by free text to 8006.
Reference sources
Contemporaneous reporting on the market exit, corporate records, licence registers, legislation and New Zealand support services. No link below goes to an operator’s cashier.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Royal Panda closed?
Not entirely. It withdrew from the British market on 31 January 2020 and relaunched in Ontario in 2022 under provincial regulation. Many sources describe it as permanently closed, which reflects the UK exit rather than the brand.
Can I play from New Zealand?
No. It is not licensed for or available to New Zealand players.
Why did it leave the UK?
Commercial consolidation. It underperformed against its parent group’s other brands and the UK licence was allowed to lapse. No regulatory action was involved.
Did players lose money?
No. UK players were given three weeks’ notice, and anyone who did not withdraw had their balance returned automatically to the payment method on record.
Who owns it now?
MGM Resorts International, through LeoVegas, which acquired the brand in 2017 and was itself acquired by MGM in September 2022.
I’ve found a gambling site using this name. Is it the same casino?
Check rather than assume. It may be the same brand licensed for another market, or an unrelated operator on a repurposed domain. Read the footer for the operating company and licence number, then verify that company on the regulator’s own register.
I self-excluded from Royal Panda. Am I still excluded?
Don’t assume so. An exclusion in one market may not carry to the same brand elsewhere, to former sister casinos, or to any new operator using the name. A bank gambling block or blocking software covers everything at once.
Can I still claim the welcome bonus described in old reviews?
Not from New Zealand. Any offer you see advertised for this brand is aimed at a market you are not in.
