Cryptocurrency, particularly bitcoins, gained a lot of popularity in the last few years. The diversity of digital currencies grows every day. Just a couple of years ago it was a bit difficult for people to imagine where can they spend their tokens but today there are plenty of options on how to invest them and what to buy with them. Online gambling is thriving too. The concept of an online casino where you can play with bitcoins is quite new but it’s becoming more and more popular every day. There is only one unanswered question – is crypto gambling legal? 

It is essential to understand that a gambling license is absolutely necessary for an iGaming business to to receive approval for  a merchant bank account and to officially work with electronic payment systems. When the casino website is working with Bitcoin, all of payment processing can be performed internally with no third party services involved that can control the crypto payment infrastructure. Deposits and withdrawals are transferred almost instantly and Bitcoins move directly between the player’s and the casino’s Bitcoin wallets. Therefore, the need to present a gambling license to any financial institutions is eliminated. In this case a gambling license is optional or at least not a requirement for accepting payments. Online  crypto casino is a gambling platform that deals mainly with bitcoin cryptocurrency. Such casinos operate with special software to reduce human intervention. In other words – a software plays the role of a dealer in the games where real players are needed. There might be also a matter of an algorithm  configuration of accidental winnings like in other casinos. The leading difference between an online gaming platform that operates only with fiat money and a casino receiving crypto is that the latter provides operation based on the peer-to-peer network (blockchain principle).

It is important for the players to understand a few crucial points for reference. The first one is that  crypto casinos are neither legal nor illegal. Since these aren’t regulated in most places, they operate out of a gray area. The gambling industry is ever changing and many of the top gambling websites are offering cryptocurrencies gaming services to new and existing players.

The cryptocurrencies are on their way to be recognised  as a real currency on a mass scale, people trust the value and that is what keeps it alive. In the US market for example there are no regulations on crypto casinos. Hence, accepting BTC payments is entirely up to individual operators.

There are different types of regulations when it comes to cryptocurrency and gambling in the different countries. There are three main types:

1. Where any online gambling is banned.
2. Where cryptocurrencies are forbidden.
3. Where crypto gambling is permitted.

Playing in online casinos and gambling sites in the countries where it is prohibited is on player’s responsibility. Most of the  gambling platforms always note the list of restricted countries in their Terms and Conditions.

To sum up, Although online gambling platforms must have a  license in order to legally process financial transactions according to general regulations, accepting payments with bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies don’t require additional licensing as the currency isn’t legally recognized yet. Therefore, BTC casinos and cryptocurrencies gaming aren not a subject to generic regulations.

There is no reason to worry as cryptographic transactions supply the highest level of security, unheard of in conventional online transactions. Moreover, the use of blockchain technology ensures universal transactions without third-party gateways. These transactions are therefore much quicker and cheaper than traditional transfers.

In conclusion we may say that  the situation with online bitcoin casinos’ legitimacy is shifting. Legislation of cryptocurrency gaming will surely evolve at a fast pace worldwide in the next several years.