4 Payment Methods used by Online Casinos

Before you can start to play, you usually have to fund your account. While there are some casinos that offer a No Deposit Bonus, let me tell you that these casinos are like unicorns.
Signing up at a casino and the registration should not take more than a few minutes. Picking the right payment method that suits you the best for you is absolutely crucial. It will massively impact your gaming experience.

So before you can start playing, you need to deposit funds. While this is usually a very straightforward process, you should invest some time, and you should see what kind of deposit and withdrawal options are offered, and in particular — what are the fees? And another very important but often overlooked thing: How long does it take for them to process your transaction? Withdrawals can take between 0 and 7 business days, depending on the involved payment processors or banks. Before casinos can confirm your withdrawal they usually have to verify your identity.

That’s a standard procedure. To speed things up, you should have a clear copy of your ID or passport ready and a recent utility bill as well. You can save a lot of time, so you don’t have to go back and forth with the customer service representatives. There are limits on how much you can withdraw per week or month with some casinos. Beware of these limits or choose a casino without a maximum withdrawal amount.

Online casino payment methods

Most Online Casinos offer a wide selection of different payment methods. As a beginner it can be quite tricky to understand the differences between those payment methods. Let me introduce you to the most popular options and give you some helpful advice on what to consider before depositing or cashing out. So if you have ever asked yourself questions like “How long will it take until the funds are in my account?” or “Can I use Bitcoin to fund my account?”, look no further.

Some words on security first. You should do your due diligence and check if the casino has a good reputation. Here on Casinocheff.com we are constantly reviewing online casinos and investigating whether it’s safe to play there or not. You can search online for reviews of other players and see what kind of information is published on the websites of the casinos. You should pay attention that you are only playing at online casinos with a legitimate gaming licence.

Once you have picked your casino, make sure you are actually on the correct website and that the SSL encryption protocol is activated. You can check this in the address bar of your browser, next to the URL you will see a small lock and if you hover on it, you can see further information on the type of connection to this site. Most sites use 128-bit encryption these days.

Bank Wire transfers

The most commonly used payment methods are regular direct bank wire transfers. These are proven to be very safe and secure and, therefore, are amongst the most accepted payment methods globally. You will receive the banking details of your chosen online casino and set up the wire to transfer the funds. Simple like this! I am sure you have used this payment method before. The main advantage for using this payment method is the lack of third parties involved. If something goes wrong, you can speak to your bank directly and don’t have to contact another company. The downside of this is that the bank will usually charge you fees that are higher than with other payment options. Another thing to consider is that wire transfer can take longer than other payment methods. Banks usually have strict protocols and transactions to online gaming companies are monitored thoroughly. It can happen that your transfer does not get approved straight away and you have to call your bank to confirm the transactions. All this can be quite annoying, especially if you want your funds in your account quickly or if you are on the go and using your mobile phone.

Visa & Mastercard

I am assuming you are not using the internet for the first time so I guess you have a very good understanding of how these work, right? The same way you are using your credit cards to shop on Amazon, you can use these for online casinos as well. This banking method should be available at all well-known and trusted online casinos. If you see options to deposit via Visa & Mastercard, you can see this as a sign of legitimacy as both credit card companies work only with companies that meet certain requirements and follow regulations. The really good thing about using credit cards is the super-fast execution! Your funds can arrive at your account almost instantly. One click and you can start playing with real money.

Paypal

Although PayPal is a very secure and user-friendly service for online transactions, not every online casino will accept PayPap as a payment method, unfortunately. This is due to the fact that PayPal was completely restricting online gambling websites a couple of years ago. This seems to change a little bit but it remains tricky so still a big chunk of online casinos prefer not to deal with the US based company. It really comes down to where you live and what’s the legal situation in your region when it comes to online gaming. If you really would like to use this payment option, I strongly recommend checking with your online casino first if they have experiences with players from your country. Paypal does not reveal any private details such as card number or bank account details with merchants. That makes it one of the safest methods.

Bitcoin

I am sure you have heard about Bitcoin already. I won’t get into the details of how it all works as this payment method should only be used by those who are already familiar with cryptocurrencies. As Bitcoin remains a huge topic in the news, an increasing number of online casinos have started to allow players to use Bitcoin to fund their accounts. That’s great news!
Basically, there are different types of Bitcoin casinos. Most of them are so-called Hybrid casinos. They will allow you to deposit and withdraw in Bitcoin. However, they will convert Bitcoin into a fiat currency before you start playing or vice versa when cashing out.
There are a few casinos that exclusively operate in Bitcoin. For those types of casinos, Bitcoins are used in the same way as you would use other currencies e.g. £, € or $. What’s worth mentioning here is that you can also transfer just a fraction of Bitcoin, e.g. 0.0003 BTC. Almost every bitcoin casino needs to run their own gaming software which they often have developed completely on their own.