Online Gambling Merchant Accounts: Get Yours Now

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Last Updated on July 7, 2023 by Corepay

An online gambling merchant account is perhaps one of the most challenging industries to get approved. However, if you run an online casino, you likely understand the challenges of finding reliable payment processing, as most banks and processors will pass on your account.

That’s where Corepay comes in. Where others decline, we accept and make it our mission to keep you approved. 

According to grandviewresearch, the online gambling market size was quoted at USD 57.54 billion in 2021 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.7% from 2022 to 2030.

Online gambling/gaming merchant accounts are very similar to fantasy sports merchant accounts because risk and skill are involved in both.

So, what is it that makes gambling and gaming merchant accounts so difficult to attain? First, they are difficult to come by as banks and processors understand the industry’s difficulties. It’s also considered to be high-risk.

Before applying for your Corepay online gambling merchant account, let’s break down what exactly one is.

What Is An Online Gaming Merchant Account?

These are credit card processing accounts that specifically serve online gambling companies. They function as a means to accept deposits and transactions and to facilitate payouts.

Applying For Your Gambling Account

At Corepay, we make applying for your account painless. We understand that time is of the essence, and we do our part to speed up the process of getting you approved. At the same time, we aim to ensure your account stays approved, so we will pre-screen your account upon application.

Below is a list of online gambling accounts we are familiar with:

• Sports betting
• Online casino
• eSports
• Online poker
• Live Betting
• Online lottery
• Live Table Games
• Online Bingo
• Fantasy Games
• Sweepstakes
• Slots
• Roulette

You will need the following when applying for your account:

• Company EIN document
• Provide a copy of your Gaming License
• Financial statements – personal and business
• Proof of operating address
• Articles of incorporation
• Principal’s driver’s license
• Business plan – typically optional, but can help show the big picture of your business to your payment processor
• Voided check proving business bank account
• Chargeback ratios must be under 2%

You will fill out a form containing all of the above when applying. This allows us to speed up the process and to get you processing payments swiftly.

If there’s any other additional information that you believe would be of help, please let us know.

Why Is Online Gambling High Risk?

Although it’s self-explanatory, online gambling is considered high-risk for several reasons. 

• Chargebacks
• Legality
• Your money, your life niche
• Reputation

Gambling Chargebacks

Gambling chargebacks are going to happen if you run an online casino. You need to keep these at a minimum or risk even higher credit card processing fees.

Banks and processors know that online casinos typically have a high chargeback ratio, resulting in a terminated or frozen account at best. 

Any gambling merchant should do the following to maintain a low chargeback ratio:

• Have a fully secure and compliant website
• Have a fast website
• Add anti-chargeback solutions such as our partner product, CB-ALERT
• Implement 24/7 customer service
• Create a FAQ page

Since casinos operate in such a risky vertical, you need to get control of your chargebacks, or you will not be able to operate.

Legality

Online casinos operate in a gray area when it comes to legality. Some states allow gambling in some forms, such as fantasy sports, while others have outlawed online gambling.

For this reason, you will need to clearly state where gambling is legal and where it is not on your website.

It is also important to note that due to certain laws in the U.S., most online casinos are based offshore, which have been known to be havens for money laundering and fraud.

Gambling Niche In General

The gambling niche is YMYL, which stands for “your money, your life.” It is heavily regulated on Google’s end as Google does not want to display websites that could dupe users or put them in the wrong position.

Because of this, casinos are extremely hard to rank for organic keywords such as “online casino.” Websites often use shady link-building services labeled “blackhat” to get around Google’s algorithm.

Reputation

Banks and processors do not want to risk damaging their brand or reputation should they get caught up with the wrong online casino. 

Why Choose Corepay

At Corepay, we boast over two decades of payment processing experience focusing on high-risk clients. Online gambling is challenging when it comes to processing; the only option is finding a high-risk processor.

When you choose Corepay, you also have the option to use our partner product, which specializes in reducing your chargeback ratio, which is much needed for online gaming.

We also offer the following:

• Efficient gambling pre-approvals within 24-72 hours
• No application, set-up fees, or annual fees
• Risk mitigation with Order Insight and CB-ALERT
• Traditional chargeback alerts
• Low-risk rates, as low as $99 per month and $.05 per transaction
• Maximize approval ratios based on your target customer base
• High-risk rates as low as blended 2.95%
• 24/7 customer service

Gambling/Gaming Merchant Account Regulations

At Corepay, we proceed with caution when it comes to this industry. Should you have a legal opinion letter or anything you can leverage as a merchant, this will help get you approved.

With this being said, we can approve sports betting accounts even if it’s a start-up.

Casino And Gaming Categories

The MCCs for gambling/sports betting are below:

• Skilled gaming: 7999, 7994, 7995 – depending on the rewards/requirements for licensing
• Gambling: 7995

*All of these codes are extremely tough to find processing for

Wrapping Up

We recommend researching and comparing different processors and rates before proceeding with your gaming merchant account.

At Corepay, we are confident that we can work with you to help grow your business and mitigate chargebacks at a highly competitive rate. 

Keep in mind that low-risk processors such as Paypal, Square, Stripe, or Ayden are not an option as they do not work with high-risk merchants. 

Fill out the application and roll the dice below with Corepay.