Baccarat gaming became popular in England and from England spread to South and Central America. After the revolution, in the late 1950's the Cuban government closed all the casinos. American casino owners then introduced the game at the Dunes casino in Las Vegas.

There are two common versions of Baccarat played today, Baccarat Punto (the term "Baccarat" when used typically means this game) and Chemin de Fer. These games are almost identical; the major difference is the role of the banker.

In the Baccarat Punto version the house plays the role of banker (this is the only Baccarat game played in the United Kingdom and North American casinos). In Chemin de Fer (played in European and Latin American casinos) one of the players banks each game, rather than the casino. The role of "banker" is rotated around the table.

The Las Vegas casinos at first targeted the game towards high rollers. Later casinos realized that the game could be enjoyed by regular casino patrons. The casino operators thought that if the game was to appeal to a more casual player some changes had to be made. The result was the creation of Mini-Baccarat.