Processing CREDIT CARD Payments FOR Online Betting

Accepting credit card payments has becoming a necessity to succeed today, for any business. This is particularly applicable when you have an online business. If your website is unable to accept credit card payments then most of your customers will find one where they will accept it.

However, if you are involved in sports betting then there are other issues that you should deal with. This article explains the working of payment processors related to online betting and the many problems which prevail in the industry.

“Sports Betting Payment Processing” basics

The websites dealing with this have to face a unique condition. They accept credit card payments like all other websites but when their customers win a bet, then the website should credit their winnings to them. This cannot be done using through the credit card. The simplest alternative is: send a check to the customer for an amount that he has won. However, that can cause problems.

Firstly, the betting websites do not get domestic merchant accounts due to the law in their country. Therefore, they should use the offshore merchant account. The betting websites are under the category of “online gambling”. Therefore, the American banks will not give them a merchant account. Furthermore, the winnings will be sent to the customer by check. The law in U.S. prevents banks from clearing those checks and if they are tracked by the DOJ, then the banks will have to pay hefty fines.

The answer to this situation is: find a bank which is not aware of your type of business you are doing or is aware of it and ready to take on the risk. A site which is popular will have to issue several hundred checks each month, particularly of events like the finals of NBA. Therefore, the risk is not meagre.

The betting websites need payment processors who also distribute the winnings, apart from accepting deposits. Also, using the major credit cards like MasterCard and Visa is becoming very difficult due to the law. Therefore, there are many payment processors who have emerged to take the risk. The problem is: who can be trusted? Most of the processors in this line of business are fake and vanish with the customer’s money once they are credited to their account. There are some good ones, however, they will continue the payment processing business only till they are caught which can happen at any time and with out any future notice. When it happens then all the money is lost.

Therefore, it is very hard to find a payment processor for the betting website. The betting website also has to find a bank which is willing to take the high risk. If you are not able to find a bank then your payment processor has to do it for you.

Some of the popular and trustworthy payment processors are “JBL” and “Zippayments.com” which process credit card payments for the betting business. However, the laws and the industry will change very quickly and expose you to a lot of risk. Contact one of our helpful account representatives to assist you in the setup of a high risk merchant account or offshore merchant account for a high risk merchant.