Paypal Casinos

The fledgeling internet was basically a hobby and information site. Businesses used to scratch their heads, trying to think of a way of making money from the internet other than having a static online presence. Some companies even decided to ignore the internet altogether, condemning it as a fad.

The main problem for business as they had no way of making easy financial transactions … then along came PayPal, buoyed by the success of internet auction site eBay.

PayPal is now the number one choice for people wanting to make financial transactions online, and PayPal transactions can now be made at many online casinos.

A Brief History of PayPal

Three people – Max Levchin, Luke Nosek and Peter Thiel created PayPal in 1998, although it was initially known as Confinity. After little initial success, the company merged with a rival called X.com, created by Elon Musk. The company was renamed PayPal in 2001 and became a public limited company in 2002.

Fledging auction site eBay bought PayPal in 2002 for $1.5 billion and launched the company as their premier eWallet services provider. PayPal swiftly became the world’s number one online financial facilitator and eventually signed agreements with both Visa and MasterCard.

By 2011 PayPal was allowing people to use their services both online and in the real world, initially via a partnership with Discover Card. In 2014 PayPal was spun off from eBay to become its own separate company.

PayPal has not always had the best of relationships with online casinos and online gambling in general. In its early years, PayPal has no problem with allowing people to use its services to gamble online, but in 2003 it had a change of heart and decided to ban the use of PayPal at any site where online gambling was possible. However, in 2010 it decided to do another flip and now said that using PayPal to make online casino deposits and withdrawals was now okay.

Although it is the number one eWallet on the internet, PayPal is not the number one eWallet used by online casinos. That honour goes to Skrill with Neteller not far behind. There are still though a large number of online casinos that accept PayPal deposits.

PayPal – Pros and Cons

Pros

• Extremely easy to use
• You probably already have a PayPal account.
• Accepted by an increasing number of online casinos
• Safe and secure if you use additional verification

Cons

• Not all online casinos accept PayPal transactions.

How to use PayPal at Online Casinos

If you do not have a PayPal account, then, of course, you will need to set one up to use PayPal at online casinos. This is extremely easy to do as all you need is an email address. Your email address will become your PayPal account name. You will also need to attach a source of funding such as a bank account to your PayPal account. PayPal does offer credit facilities, but for online gambling safety, it’s probably best that you do not use credit to gamble.

It is worth your while setting up additional verification with PayPal to make yourself extra secure. On your mobile device, this can now be done via your fingerprint. Elsewhere, you can set up PayPal so that when you log in you receive a passcode via an SMS message. You then enter this code into the PayPal app to verify that it is you using the account.

When it comes to depositing at your chosen online casino via PayPal head to the casino’s cashier page and choose PayPal as your deposit method and the amount you want to deposit, when you have okayed the transfer, an applet should pop up, giving you access to your PayPal account. Complete the necessary steps to confirm that it is you requesting the deposit. Once everything is okayed, PayPal should transfer your money from your connected bank account (or your PayPal balance if you have money in your PayPal account) into your online casino account. The process should take no longer than a couple of minutes.

You should be able to withdraw to your PayPal account too, but to do so you must have deposited your PayPal account first. The withdrawal process is identical to the deposit process except that you are passing money into your PayPal account and not from it.

Unfortunately, online casinos are not as quick to transfer withdrawals as they are deposits. The best online casinos will transfer the money immediately, but some may delay a withdrawal by one day or even longer.

Conclusion

Paypal may be the world’s number one eWallet, but it has a way to go before it becomes the world’s number on eWallet at online casinos plus there are some other issues that PayPal has to face in this regard. Some jurisdictions are considering banning PayPal payments at online casinos as not only does PayPal have credit facilities, a player’s PayPal balance also can be paid off via a credit card. Many governments – quite rightly – frown upon the concept of funding gambling via credit facilities.

If you have a PayPal account (or wish to open one), then you should be able to find plenty of online casinos that accept PayPal deposits. Just remember to be sensible and never gamble with money that would be better used to pay rent, utilities or for groceries.