Over the past decade or so, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Litecoin and Ethereum have established a reputation as something of a gamble in the investment world due to their dramatic and unpredictable volatility. But today, there is a growing trend towards them being used for gambles of a very different type.
Widespread adoption of crypto for use as a currency in the conventional sense of the word has been slow, and despite the fact that it has been around for more than ten years, you still don’t see people using Bitcoin to pay for their groceries or fill the car up with gas. Nevertheless, there is one sector that has been ahead of the curve in this regard.
The online casino industry and cryptocurrency are both products of the digital age. They have grown up together, and the first Bitcoin casino opened its virtual doors to the public back in 2014. Last year it added Ethereum to the payment options and this casino now accepts Litecoin as a currency, too. In the casino sector, at least, adoption of both Bitcoin and altcoins is on the increase, and there are several clear advantages to using them to finance your gaming.
Complete transparency
The online gambling sector is no longer the wild west that is was in the 1990s, and today’s casinos have checks and balances that make them as reliable and robust as land-based casinos – sometimes, more so. But blockchain adds even more transparency to each transaction.
All you have to do is enter the transaction ID and a handful of other details to get clear, independent verification that the result of the game was arrived at using random numbers and nobody tampered with it. Sure, you can do this with regular online casinos too, but it will take far longer and require the involvement of a third party testing house.
Faster, cheaper transactions
Digital currency, whether it is Bitcoin, Litecoin Ethereum or something else, exists in the same online universe as the casino at which you are playing. Transactions are instantaneous and require no manual administration.
This is why when you play using crypto, you will not ordinarily be faced with the transaction fees and delays that are experienced with other payment methods like bank transfers, credit cards or third party payment platforms like Skrill or PayPal.
Privacy and anonymity
This is one of the biggest advantages of digital currency. Many of us are uncomfortable with the fact that our every transaction seems to be monitored and recorded by someone in this big data age.
But blockchain offers far higher levels of anonymity. It is ironic that a digital innovation like cryptocurrency has actually served as a weapon with which we can fight back against the lack of privacy in the online age.
Better odds of winning
We all know that the basic law of the casino is that the house always wins. That is natural, and any gaming site that pays out more than it takes in will soon go out of business. However, with a casino that is based on crypto, the house edge will invariably be lower, due to more streamlined processes and therefore reduced costs.
In a traditional online casino, the house edge is usually between two and 12 percent, depending on the game. A Bitcoin casino, on the other hand, will have a house edge between 0.5 and three percent. It means your bankroll lasts longer and you stand a better chance of that big win.
Legal and tax benefits
Every country has its own rules regarding online gambling, and in some cases, these rules make crypto an obvious choice. Taking the USA as an example, there are no rules to stop people from playing online casino games. However, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act prohibits US banks from processing transactions to or from online casinos, meaning that in practice, it is very difficult for gamers to play for real money.
Bitcoin and altcoins fall outside these rules, and casinos can accept deposits and make payouts to and from a player’s digital wallet regardless of where that player is located. There is also the additional bonus that as many countries do not classify cryptocurrency as real money, there will be no tax on your winnings.
