• VGW has announced that it will be completely shutting down its Sweeps Coins gameplay in the state of New York
• The shutdown will concern Sweeps Coins, but Gold Coins may still be used and enjoyed by players to keep playing games for free
• This is the latest decision by a major sweepstakes operator to suspend Sweeps Coins in the Empire State

Faced with fresh challenges, VGW, the company behind such sweepstakes majors as Chumba Casino, LuckyLand Slots, and Global Poker, has announced that it is going to phase out its Sweeps Coins in New York while retaining its Gold Coins offer.

Sweeps Coins withdraw from VGW’s NY operations in the coming months

This decision comes amid a nationwide crackdown on the sector, with gambling industry stakeholders alleging that the sweepstakes social casinos available in the country have been skirting rules and offering gambling in a roundabout way, and without the necessary licenses.

VGW has vehemently denied these arguments and called them misplaced at a time when lawmakers, mainstream gambling companies, and trade groups, such as the American Gaming Association, have continued to drum up opposition.

In a statement, VGW confirmed that it was phasing out its sweepstakes offer from the Empire State, but assured players that they would still be able to continue playing their favorite games for free using the Gold Coins currency instead.

VGW is hardly the first operator to have resolved to this strategy, as it continues to wrangle with regulatory pushback. Previously, other operators such as High 5 Casino, MrLuck, Funzpoints, and HelloMillions have all resolved to the same measure.

However, the VGW has not resigned itself to defeat, arguing instead that it acknowledged the increased interest in the innovative sector that has made it possible for millions of Americans to enjoy hundreds of games.

The company insisted that it was committed to establishing modern, appropriate regulatory structures that benefited players and states alike.

Just recently, the VGW founded the Social Gaming Leadership Alliance (SGLA), a trade organization that seeks to promote the facts about sweepstakes social casinos and seeks to counter an ongoing offensive from mainstream gambling companies that sweepstakes are offering an unregulated gambling product.

Phased withdrawal of Sweeps Coins, with players having time by August 1 to redeem

Starting on June 2, players in New York will not be able to collect their daily Sweeps Coins. Any remaining Sweeps Coins that are available on player balances, however, may still be used through July 2, when the company is going to completely shut down any remaining sweeps gameplay.

Players who may have remaining unredeemed Sweeps Coins after that period may no longer be able to use them to game, but they will still have another one-month window to actually redeem those prizes. Then, on August1, the Sweeps Coins will become unusable in any form.

VGW has already been in retreat in states that have taken a hardliner approach against the sector, including in places such as Washington, Montana, Michigan, Nevada, Delaware, Connecticut, and others.

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