Lastly, the chips are considered to be an integral part of the casino environment, and replacing them with some alternate currency would be unpopular. A more pragmatic reason for casinos using chips in place of cash at table games is to discourage players from grabbing back their bet and attempting to flee should their bet not win, because chips, unlike cash, must be redeemed at the casino cashier and have no value outside the casino in question. The uniform weight of the casino's official tokens allows them to weigh great stacks or heaps of chips rather than tally them (though aids such as chip trays are far more common.) Furthermore, it is observed that consumers gamble more freely with replacement currencies than with cash. This attribute also enables the pit boss or security to quickly verify the amount being paid, reducing the chance that a dealer might incorrectly pay a customer. Because of the uniform size, shape, and patterns of stacks of chips, they are easier to tally compared to currency.

Generally they have no value outside of the casino, but certain businesses (such as taxis or waiters-especially for tips) in gambling towns may honor them informally. The tokens are interchangeable with money at the casino. Money is exchanged for tokens in a casino at the casino cage, at the gaming tables, or at a cashier station. ( March 2018) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Plaques differ from chips in that they are larger, usually rectangular in shape and contain serial numbers.

Some casinos also use rectangular gaming plaques for high-stakes table games ($25,000 and above). Casino tokens are also widely used as play money in casual or tournament games. Colored metal, injection-molded plastic or compression molded clay tokens of various denominations are used primarily in table games, as opposed to metal token coins, used primarily in slot machines. 50,000 Malagasy franc gaming plaque from Grand Cercle casino, Antananarivo, Madagascar, circa 1995.Ĭasino chips (also known as casino or gaming tokens, checks/ cheques, or poker chips) are small discs used in terms of currency in casinos.

JSTOR ( November 2010) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message)Ĭhips from the fictional 'Casino de Isthmus City'.

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Poker chips in metal case on wheels