Resorts World Las Vegas is phasing out cashless wagering, a notable reversal for the Strip property that had positioned itself as an early standard bearer for digital payments when it opened in 2021.
The shift was confirmed this week by President & CFO, Carlos Castro during a Nevada Gaming Commission hearing at which he was unanimously approved for a gaming licence.
Castro told regulators that the property is stepping back from the model for now and will reassess its approach later, with Resorts World returning to a more conventional machine-based payment journey built around cash and TITO rather than a fully cashless gaming experience. No formal operational reason was given, but the move marks a clear pause in one of the highest profile cashless experiments on the Las Vegas Strip.
The decision lands at a sensitive moment for the business. Castro has been central to Resorts World’s effort to stabilise operations and rebuild confidence after the property was hit with a $10.5m fine tied to AML failings connected to an illegal bookmaker. In this context, the withdrawal from cashless wagering will be read by some as part of a broader simplification of controls and a return to more familiar operating processes while the group continues its compliance reset.
This does not mean cashless gaming is finished in Nevada. The technology remains a long-term industry ambition, particularly for operators looking to connect payments, loyalty, identity verification and responsible gambling tools in a single digital wallet.
Resorts World itself had expanded the concept in 2022, adding remote sign up and biometric authentication to its mobile wallet ecosystem.
But this latest move is a reminder that innovation on the casino floor is only as durable as customer uptake, operational confidence and regulatory comfort. Resorts World may have been first out of the gate on the Strip, but for now it is heading back to the traditional model, and that says plenty about where priorities sit in Las Vegas today.
