NCV or NV chips are used for special events or tournaments where you may not have purchased the chips for their stated value. For example, you might buy into a tournament for $500 but receive $10,000 in chips to start. If they give you regular house chips you will just head for the cage and pocket a $9,500 profit. So you get $10,000 in NCV chips to play the tournament. Many if not most casinos have NCV chips floating around.