Cryptocurrencies are becoming more and more popular, which is reflected in the rise of crypto casinos. Because if there is one industry that keeps up with the times, it is the online casino industry. There are also more and more crypto casinos. That immediately raises a lot of questions, because are online casinos that accept cryptocurrency legal? What are the advantages of depositing with bitcoins? And of course; what are the drawbacks? In this article about cryptocurrency and crypto casinos, I will answer that. More about online casinos? Read all about the best online casinos.
What is a crypto casino?
Cryptocurrency is value in the form of an amount in a cryptocurrency, for which the English word “cryptocurrency” is also often used. Cryptocurrency should be seen as a kind of digital currency, which is used as an alternative money system for regular currencies and is not issued for banks or governments. The most well-known cryptocurrency is bitcoin, but other currencies such as Litecoin, Ethereum, Ripple, and Dogecoin are also widely known. These have now also reached online casinos.
Which cryptocurrencies are accepted in online casinos?
There are more and more casinos that accept transactions in cryptocurrencies. In most cases, this concerns bitcoins, but Ethereum, Litecoin, and Ripple are also accepted by some casinos. A crypto casino is therefore a regular online casino that only offers an additional payment solution in the form of cryptocurrency. Usually, as a player, you can also carry out transactions with e-wallets, credit cards, and bank transfers. Most casinos allow both deposits and withdrawals with cryptocurrencies, some websites only accept deposits in crypto.
Is crypto gambling too?
Yes and no. Since trading in cryptocurrencies is based on supply and demand, it cannot be regarded as a game of chance from a legal point of view. After all, market forces provide a price and although this is extremely difficult to predict and most individuals have no influence on the outcome of the price, it is not yet a game of chance. The return of cryptocurrencies is dependent on developments in the field of supply and demand, while in games of chance there are no markets that influence the final return.
Same goal
However, I must add that the amount invested in lotteries and progressive jackpots can affect the yield. There is also speculation when purchasing cryptocurrencies. Most buyers bet on spectacular price development. The goal of, for example, buying a ticket from a game of chance and purchasing cryptocurrencies is therefore the same: the buyer wants to become richer. Both with cryptocurrencies and with betting on a progressive jackpot or a lottery ticket, the intention is to make spectacular profits with it. This creates an emotional trigger for both gambling and purchasing cryptocurrencies. Knowing more? Read: Investing in cryptocurrency does not fall under gambling.
Misconception: cryptos are anonymous
Another discussion is whether crypto is anonymous or not. Let me be clear about that, cryptos are no longer anonymous. Initially, this seemed to be the case, because as a holder of cryptocurrency you could transfer the currency to a wallet of which you did not know who the holder was. The same applied to your wallet, only a number was known, but that was it. Despite governments not wanting to regulate cryptocurrencies, they have been busy levying taxes and tracking transactions. In that regard, there is some hypocrisy among governments: do not regulate and advise against investing in the digital currency, but do levy taxes.
KYC: Know Your Customer
In the meantime, every crypto owner must verify his or her account with personal data, proof of identity, and proof of address. As a result, anonymity has disappeared. The verification is mandatory from the Know Your Customer Policy (KYC). One goal of the KYC process is to uncover the origin and location of the money. Risky activities that require such investigation are fraud, money laundering, and terrorist financing.
Advantages crypto casino
With that, I immediately mention all the controversy surrounding cryptocurrencies and therefore also bitcoin casinos. Where there is a dispute, there are usually two sides of the story and that is expressed in clear advantages and disadvantages of crypto casinos. I’ll start with the benefits.
- Result for people with cryptocurrency: just like with regulated investments, there are always people who are dissatisfied with the money that has been put into the currency, and crypto casinos offer a solution. Although payments in cryptocurrencies are increasingly accepted, you can’t go everywhere with your bitcoins or ripples. If you do not know what else to do with them, it can be very useful if you can suddenly use them in an online casino.
- Additional Payment Method: Enabling cryptocurrency transactions gives the player an additional payment method. If multiple currencies are accepted, you immediately have several extra resources at your disposal. And let’s face it: every additional payment method is a nice bonus. Of course, as a player, you hope for a payment option such as iDEAL, but every good casino should offer sufficient alternatives in the form of e-wallets, credit cards, prepaid vouchers, bank transfers, and therefore cryptocurrencies.
- Fast deposits and withdrawals: e-wallets such as Trustly and iDEAL are also very fast, but few payment methods are even faster than cryptocurrencies. That seems obvious today, but try making an old-fashioned bank transfer to an online casino on Friday evening when the banks are closed. Then you can wait until after the weekend before you can finally play. Online casinos fill an immediate need and so does crypto.
Disadvantages of crypto casinos
As far as I’m concerned, the advantages are quite clear, but that does not alter the fact that not everyone is equally positive about cryptocurrency. I will explain some disadvantages of bitcoin casinos:
- Not accepted everywhere: yes, bitcoins are becoming more and more common, but they are far from being accepted everywhere. The majority of casinos do not accept payments in cryptocurrencies. That is not always a conscious choice of the casino but often has to do with the license.
- Worse permit: and that brings me straight to my second point about the role of the permit. Many popular casinos in Europe are licensed from Malta, the United Kingdom, Sweden, or for example Gibraltar, all of which are licenses that are internationally respected. However, all these gambling authorities do not allow adding crypto to the list of payment methods. Guard dogs that do, often have a questionable reputation. For example, many bitcoin casinos have a license from Curaçao, which you can see as the c-garniture under the licenses. Now I do not want to suggest that every casino that has a license from Curaçao is also a shady organization because there are plenty of websites that provide an excellent service.
- Fluctuating Values: While I am not talking about an officially regulated currency, they are not called cryptocurrencies for anything. The value of, for example, a bitcoin or dogecoin is measured about currencies such as the Euro or Dollar and the effective value can therefore also fluctuate. This ensures that the value of your deposits or withdrawals can fluctuate greatly within a short time. That could of course also work out well, but I think it would be more desirable if the currency had a little more stability. In addition, about money management, it is also a lot more difficult to determine your budget, since you will always calculate back to another currency: for most players the Euro.
Difference between bitcoin casino and regular online casino
The biggest difference? The fact that as a player you have an extra payment method and a different license is used. Also, some online casinos have specific bonuses for cryptocurrency deposits and that’s where I’ve had the biggest differences. The rest of the service should be the same. As a player, you do not have to use the cryptocurrency yourself, so you would hardly notice that you are playing at a bitcoin casino. The website, the game offer, the customer service, the live casino; should function just like any other casino.