Anjouan in 2026: The Renewal Reality Check

[Valge]

We’ve all been hearing how “hot” Anjouan has become in the licensing world, so here are a few fresh datapoints from the register that put the hype into numbers.

Key statistics (as of 3 March 2026)​

The dashboard shows 1,209 active operators. What stands out most is how renewal-heavy 2026 will be: 952 licences, or 78.74% of all active licences, expire this year. So 2026 isn’t just another growth year. It’s a real stress test for renewals.

Issuance momentum​

The growth curve explains the expiry spike. Issuance jumped from 44 licences in 2023 to 430 in 2024, then 582 in 2025. With a roughly annual cycle, that 2025 cohort rolls straight into 2026 expiries: 579 out of 582 expire in 2026. The 2024 cohort also feeds into it heavily, with 344 expiring in 2026.

B2B vs B2C​

The 2026 expiries are overwhelmingly B2C: 90.14%. That’s important because B2C is where real-world friction usually shows up first, things like PSP appetite, KYC/AML expectations, player-facing trust, and dispute handling. If there’s going to be a visible “quality filter” in renewals, it’s most likely to appear here rather than in quieter B2B activity.

What’s next​

The core question for 2026 isn’t only “are licences being issued?”, but “how many operators renew once the first 12 months are over?” If renewal rates hold, the active licence count can keep rising even if new issuance slows. If renewals are weak, you’ll still see plenty of movement, but more churn than real growth.

Questions for the audience​

Do you think 2026 is the year Anjouan proves staying power, or the year we start seeing the ceiling? What renewal rates would you expect once the big 2025 cohort comes due? And in your experience, what usually drives non-renewal the most: payments/PSPs, compliance burden, reputational concerns, or operators simply rotating to the next “fast and cheap” option?

 

[conker]

I believe @maxd posted a recent thread highlighting some of the many issues with Anjouan, so it is little surprise that operators are now seeing this licensing jurisdiction (if you can call it that) for what it is.

Since Curacao tightened up its rules, there are fewer and fewer options for the operators that want to work in the shadows. However, there will always be somewhere willing to take operators money for a scrap of paper that says 'license' on it.