Light & Wonder Receives UAE Gaming-Related Vendor License from GCGRA

Light & Wonder has secured a Gaming-Related Vendor License from the United Arab Emirates’ General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA), clearing the global gaming supplier to provide both online and land-based products in the market. The approval, granted on July 18, makes Light & Wonder the 13th company to obtain a gaming-related vendor license in the UAE.

The license allows Light & Wonder to supply licensed operators in the UAE with land-based electronic gaming machines, table games and related utilities, as well as iGaming content. It’s the latest sign that the UAE’s nascent but tightly regulated commercial gaming market is drawing serious interest from established global suppliers as the country builds out its licensing framework.

What the GCGRA License Actually Covers

The GCGRA is the federal authority responsible for regulating and overseeing all commercial gaming activity in the UAE, established to create a world-class regulatory framework covering lottery, internet gaming, sports wagering and land-based gaming facilities. Under that framework, any supplier of gaming equipment or related goods and services must hold a Gaming-Related Vendor License before doing business in the country — a category distinct from the operator licenses required for entities that actually run gaming facilities or platforms.

Getting there isn’t a quick process. Applicants start by submitting an intake form covering company details, key personnel and organizational structure, followed by an initial GCGRA screening and an application fee before being granted access to the regulator’s licensing portal. From there, applicants must submit detailed financial and corporate documentation, pass a full review, and secure in-principle approval before the license itself is finally issued — with or without conditions attached.

Joining a Growing List of Licensed Suppliers

Light & Wonder now joins a list of gaming-related vendor licensees that includes Aristocrat Technologies, Novomatic, IGT Global Services, Konami Gaming, Scientific Games International and Pollard Banknote, among others — a roster that reads like a who’s-who of the global slot and gaming-equipment industry. Several of the more familiar names to U.S. players and operators, including IGT and Aristocrat, are now formally cleared to operate in the UAE alongside Light & Wonder.

Light & Wonder is a cross-platform gaming company built around three core businesses: its Gaming division, which designs and manufactures the slot machines and casino systems found on floors worldwide; SciPlay, its social casino publishing arm; and iGaming, which supplies digital real-money content to online operators. The company posted $3.3 billion in consolidated revenue for full-year 2025, with its Gaming segment — the largest of the three — continuing to grow its installed base of premium machines across North America even as it now looks to expand its footprint into newly regulated markets like the UAE.

Why This Matters for the Industry

The UAE’s commercial gaming market is still in its early stages, but the steady accumulation of licensed vendors signals real momentum toward a functioning regulated ecosystem. For a company like Light & Wonder, which already ships tens of thousands of gaming machines annually to casinos in more than 50 countries, a UAE vendor license represents another avenue for its hardware and content — even as the timeline for actual gaming operators to launch in the country remains further out. As more established suppliers clear the GCGRA’s vetting process, it strengthens the case that the UAE intends to build a market with recognizable, credible players rather than a regulatory framework with no real supply chain behind it.