Comoros Calls Anjouan Licensing Bodies ‘Fictitious,’ Seeks UK Assistance

The government of Comoros is seeking British assistance in investigating a controversial offshore gambling licensing network linked to UK nationals that claims to operate under the authority of Anjouan, one of the country’s islands.

The archipelagic nation, located off Africa’s east coast between Mozambique and Madagascar, claims the network is operating without authorization, according to The Guardian.

Comoros says it is also working with international police and financial intelligence agencies as it prepares legal action against those involved.

The government is essentially disputing the legal status of gambling licenses held by nearly 1,500 businesses listed on Anjouan’s public register.

Disputed Legal History

Anjouan Licensing Services began issuing licenses in May 2023, amid regulatory tightening in Curaçao and the Philippines.

Anjouan is one of three main islands making up the Union of the Comoros. The island declared independence in 1997 before rejoining the union under an arrangement that granted the islands considerable autonomy.

During its separatist period, Anjouan developed an offshore financial services industry. The current gambling licensing regime claims its legal authority derives from the Computer Gaming Licensing Act of 2005.

But the national government disputes the continued legitimacy of the Anjouan Offshore Finance Authority (AOFA), the body purportedly overseeing the licensing system.

In December 2025, the Comoros central bank denounced AOFA and Anjouan Corporate Services (ACS) as “fictitious entities” issuing unauthorized financial licenses, although its warning primarily concerned banking rather than gambling.

Former Comoros attorney-general Azad Mzé subsequently told Australia’s ABC that Anjouan Licensing Services, the company issuing gambling licenses, was also an “illegal entity.”

Meanwhile, a September 2025 study by researchers Steve Menary and Marko Begović questioned the documentary foundations of Anjouan’s gambling regime.

The researchers found that the publicly available version of the purported 2005 gambling law lacked an official signature or stamp and was hosted on the licensing organization’s own website.

Anjouan Gaming, which claims to be the island’s official gambling regulator, maintains that the licenses are valid, citing an independent legal opinion. However, it does not identify the law firm responsible or make the opinion publicly available.

British Business Connections

An earlier investigation by Australia’s ABC identified links between ACS and British businessmen, including members of London’s Sorsky family.

The Guardian has now reported that ACS Global Custodian, a company connected to the family, saw its cash holdings rise from £13,130 (US$17,467) to £614,826 ($817,928) in 2025. The source of the increase remains unestablished.

Harold Sorsky denied that ACS had sold or issued gambling licenses since the family acquired it in 2023, saying those functions were handled by other providers.

The Guardian also found Anjouan-licensed casinos advertised as alternatives to Britain’s GamStop self-exclusion system. One operator, SlotsCharm, contacted its reporter more than 100 times with gambling incentives after the reporter stopped betting.

What remains unclear is whether Anjouan’s own authorities have authorized the businesses issuing gambling licenses in the island’s name. Even if they have, that would not necessarily settle the separate dispute over their legality under national law.

Attempts by Casino.org to contact Anjouan’s government for comment were unsuccessful.