Online Casino Banking Options 2021
Full List of Deposit & Withdrawal Methods for Online Gambling
Online Casino Banking Options
The iGaming market has changed a lot thanks to the internet. Gone are the days when gamblers had to travel to land-based establishments with cash money.
Ever since the appearance of online casinos players can now enjoy their favorite games right from the comfort of their homes so it was expected that banking options would also evolve to meet the players’ needs.
Most Popular Online Casino Payment Methods
Any player that enjoys gambling online needs to be able to make withdrawals and deposits fast, easy and safe. Luckily, there are a plethora of casino banking options ready to be used at all online casinos around the world.
The versatility of these banking options simply can’t be matched and, thanks to them, players can enjoy their stress-free gambling at any time, from anywhere.
Credit/Debit Cards
By far the most popular casino payment method available at gambling websites all around the world. There are very few casinos that don’t include this method and that’s usually only because the entire website is built or specialized around another banking option.
The most visited casinos are as expected Visa websites and Mastercard online casinos where players can use the cards associated with a bank account to make both withdrawals and deposits.
Transactions made with credit cards are usually fast and the limits are pretty high. The biggest benefit of using this method is the wide availability and how easy it is to use.
For these reasons, the only places in the world where credit and debit cards are not popular, are the countries where gambling is illegal, therefore there are restrictions to casino transfers.
Bank Transfer
This is one of the first and oldest banking methods that became available to players. Your banking account needs to be verified by the casino for safety purposes so the banking operator can contact you in case it spots any kind of fraudulent activity.
This method is available worldwide with the only exception being the countries where gambling is illegal and banking operators can’t allow transfers from and to online casinos.
Another major drawback to bank transfers is the relatively long processing window. This can vary from bank to bank but we are generally looking at at least 4-5 working days. Credit cards can’t be used privately since they involve entering personal information, which for some players isn’t very convenient.
However, a big benefit of this banking method is the fact that it has very high limits for both withdrawals and deposits. If you are a high roller and you are willing to wait a little more time, this method may just be a good option.
E-Wallets
Right after credit and debit cards, e-wallets represent the second most popular casino transaction method in the world. It doesn’t matter if we are talking about PayPal casinos, Skrill websites, or Neteller sites, e-wallets are secure and offer increased privacy for insanely fast transactions.
Since they are so popular, they are also widely available all around the world, even in countries where gambling is illegal since transactions done with e-wallets can’t be traced by regular banking operators or governments.
However, there is a drawback to them. To be able to provide these great services, e-wallet operators will charge small fees for transactions.
Prepaid Cards
Prepaid cards like the ones that can be used at PaySafeCard casinos are an interesting addition to the wide variety of casino banking methods. They are based on prepaid vouchers of different values that can be bought at local shops or online.
The player will receive a PIN that he/she needs to use at the desired gambling website. Because it involves no banking system, this banking method offers complete security and privacy.
There are no additional fees and transactions are insanely fast, however, both deposit and withdrawal limits are much smaller compared to other banking options.
Cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrencies themselves are not very old, however, their huge potential is recognized by more and more people and, in the end, they have begun to be accepted even at online casinos and a couple of them like Bitcoin websites and Dogecoin sites have become very popular.
This method has many great benefits like fast transactions, an extra layer of security due to the way they work, and offers a lot more privacy as transactions can be done anonymously.
However, they are not yet that popular all around the world and there are still plenty of gambling websites that don’t accept them. Also, there are harder to use compared to other banking methods.
Mobile Banking Solutions
This method is relatively new in the iGaming market. While some companies like Boku have been around ever since 2003, mobile payment solutions have been seen as a viable option only in the last couple of years.
Some of the most popular casino mobile payment options can be enjoyed at Zimpler websites or Trustly casinos.
You have the ability to make fast and safe transactions right from your mobile device without too much hustle. Similar to cryptocurrencies transactions, all mobile wallets transactions are anonymous, adding another layer of security. However, they have far smaller limits compared to other methods.
How to Make a Deposit at Online Casinos
To make a deposit at an online casino is a simple process and, usually, it takes very little time. Following some quick steps, you should be able to play your favorite game in a matter of minutes.
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Log in to your player account on the casino’s website
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Go to the Cashier section and select your preferred banking option as a deposit method
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Enter the amount of cash you wish to deposit and follow the instructions
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The transfer should be done almost instantaneously for most banking options or in a couple of hours at most.
These steps are all you need for easy-to-use banking options like credit cards and prepaid vouchers, however, for some other methods, additional steps may be involved.
For example, e-wallets, cryptocurrency wallets, and mobile wallets will all require you to create an account (open a wallet) on the operator’s website.
Cryptocurrencies require the most steps out of all the payment methods because not only do you have to create a wallet but you can’t actually fill that wallet with your credit card, just like you would do with an e-wallet.
You need to buy cryptocurrency from specific websites and after that transfer them to your crypto-wallet before you are able to proceed.
How to Make a Withdrawal at Online Casinos
The process of withdrawal is very similar to the casino payment process for deposits. Here is the simplified process, step by step:
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Log in to your gambler account on the casino website
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Go to the cashier section and select your desired banking option as the withdrawal method
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Enter the amount of cash you wish to withdraw. At this point, additional steps may be required depending on the selected method. Just follow the steps indicated by the casino.
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Wait to receive your cash.
How to Choose the Most Suitable Banking Method
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Some casinos will charge some fees for different banking options. Usually, we are talking about small amounts, something like $2 - $3 for a deposit and a little more for withdrawals.
While for a high roller this amount is meaningless, for a player on a tighter budget, every penny counts.
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Not all banking options available for deposits will also be available for withdrawals. A popular example is Maestro.
You can use it to make deposits but you can’t make withdrawals with it, leaving you no other option than to resort to bank transfers or another available method at your casino to make a withdrawal.
Also, most gambling websites will require you to use the same method for both types of transactions. Choose carefully to avoid any unnecessary headaches.
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Transaction timeframes are a very important aspect to take into consideration. Depending on the method you choose it can vary from a couple of seconds to a couple of weeks.
For example, e-wallets may take only around a couple of hours for a withdrawal while for credits cards, you may have to wait a whole week.
Banking Methods Restrictions and Favorite Options
Unfortunately, not all casino banking methods are available worldwide and this can happen due to a couple of reasons. Mostly it is because gambling is illegal in that specific territory and the government forbids banking operators to perform transfers to and from online casinos.
The most affected banking options in these cases are credit and debit cards along with bank transfers due to the fact that they are connected to a banking account and all transactions can be traced.
In these regions, players will prefer to use banking options that allow private transactions like e-wallets, mobile wallets, and cryptocurrencies.
Even if this is the generally accepted situation, there are some particular cases where some payment options are not available due to other reasons.
For example, since 2020 players from the UK are unable to use any sort of credit card when gambling. It seems like the government decided that credit cards can exacerbate a gambling problem, deciding to ban their use with the expectation of lotteries.
Another example similar to the above one is in Germany where Visa and Mastercard are banned but there is little information about why this actually happened.
China has a new favorite method called WeChat Pay. This method managed to reach over 1.2 billion monthly users in the second quarter of 2020.
Brazilians have a particularly preferred method called Boleto Bancario. It’s an old company founded more than two decades ago that allows players to initiate real-time transitions. A valid tax number is required however to be able to use this method.
Casino Banking Methods Security
All reputable gambling operators will go to extreme lengths to protect their customers, especially since gambling websites involve large transactions coming in and out. 
A casino’s security is one of the main elements that make the particular website trustworthy or not and a bad reputation scares customers away.
For these reasons, any trustworthy casino will have not one, but actually, several security protocols to protect their players’ personal information and ensure that everyone can safely enjoy gambling.
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Firewalls - The most common type of protection used nowadays on almost every website. It defines parameters that state what traffic is allowed and which is not on a website.
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Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) - This is a data exchange protocol that encrypts all information between two parties making it unavailable for a third one. It is a state-of-the-art security system used not only by online casinos but also by banking operators.
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Banking Options Private Security - As mentioned above all banking operators use their own SSL and Firewalls but some of them, like cryptocurrencies and mobile wallets add an additional layer of security due to the fact that they allow completely anonymous transactions.
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Audits - All reputable casino operators go periodically through audits held by independent authorities and are regulated by local and/or international bodies.
Best Casino Banking Option
On the surface, at the very first glance, you are tempted to pick e-wallets. This method seems to have it all, fast deposits and withdrawals, fairly large limits, and complete privacy and security. However, the companies operating e-wallets make money by charging a small amount. It doesn’t seem like much at first, but if you gamble often, it adds up.
Credit cards are free to use and very popular. They check a lot of boxes with their huge transaction limits, perfect customer support, easiness of use, and accessibility. However, they can’t be used in countries where gambling is either illegal or in a grey zone.
Overall, the point is that every single method has both great benefits and drawbacks and there is no straight answer to which one is the best. It all comes down to a matter of preferences and what suits your needs the best.