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The Best Online Casino Merchant Account

According to the statistics portal Statista, the global media and entertainment market, which includes online casinos and gaming, is expected to grow to an estimated $2.14 trillion dollar industry by 2020.
Although it is quite clear that online gaming and casinos are lucrative businesses, many financial institutions consider them high risk and refuse to offer online casino merchant accounts. Due to the industry’s accompanying background and history such as high chargeback ratios and potential legal issues due to unclear laws keep most banks at a distance.
Fortunately, there are 10 high-risk merchant account providers that do specialise in the field of online casinos and will be more than happy to assist you in finding the perfect solution for your business.

0 1

Total Processing

Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Manchester, UK, Total Processing offers customised payment solutions for businesses. They specialise in high risk merchant accounts for online casino merchants.

The Pros

Their expertise lies in the following: high availability account servicing, high availability and redundancy, scalability and change speed reactivity, independent from an acquiring bank, dedicated expert support, robust and simple integrations, cost effective solutions, PCI level 1 compliant, and business critical cash flow delivery timescales.

Additional benefits for their merchants include: a secure payment gateway, hotlists, flexible card verification, security tools, enhanced reporting functions, fixed bonds, rolling reserves, deferred payments, online risk analysis, and recurring payments. Accepting all traditional and alternative payments, including ApplePay ( a total of 198 payment methods).

They also provide great customer service and chargeback prevention.

The Cons

Although there is a phone number, search bar and chat feature for questions, the live chat feature is only available during office hours, which doesn’t help if there are emergencies after office hours. Having 24/7 support is key to putting out any potential fires.

0 2

Axcess Merchant Services

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Leeds, England, Axcess Merchant Services offers its customers 51 alternative payment methods, 179 currencies, and fraud experts to tailor a risk screening process. With an expansive network of 390 banks, online gaming merchants are sure to score competitive rates.
Security is fundamental to their business and Axcess keeps vigilant by conducting continuing chargeback and fraud alert data aggregation as well as analysis.
Axcess has a Knowledge Hub on their website which provides a wealth of resources in the form of guides, white papers, case studies, and videos. This demonstrates the company’s goal to educate and facilitate potential clients to make informed decisions.

The Pros

Their high risk merchant services include: instant approval, dedicated technical support, and Dual PCI Level 1 Payment Gateways,
Additional solutions offered include recurring billing services, telephone billing and virtual terminal services, mobile payment options, Copy and Pay Integration, and managed merchant services.

The Cons

There is very little information available about their standard contract. It does not share information about pricing, contract details, and virtually no merchant complaints about its fees. Due to its work with high risk merchants, it is to be expected for merchants to pay higher-per-transaction fees as well as experiencing more fund holds.

0 3

EMA

With offices in both Riga, Latvia, and Milan, Italy, EMA is made up of a team of bankers with backgrounds in both IT and credit card processing that specialise in helping merchants find the best payment solution and facilitating the integration process.

The Pros

EMA makes specific suggestions so merchants interested in opening a binary option merchant account can do so successfully. First, merchants have to make sure they open a european gambling or financial licence (i.e, CySEC). Second, be aware that American Express transactions should not be accepted. Finally, although 70% of all deposits are made through eWallets, the larger investments are made with bank cards.

The Cons

They only offer an email contact form, and a phone number, but no live chat feature. Chat features are quick and convenient way for merchants to get their most important questions answered. Valuable time is wasted in simply using online contact forms and email.

0 4

Instabill

Located in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Instabill was founded in 2001 by CEO Jason Field to help high risk merchants secure credit card payment solutions.

Instabill can now offer payouts in bitcoin. Before opening an account, merchants would need to submit all the necessary Know Your Customer (KYC) documents.

Instabill requires a minimum of six months of payment processing statements with company name showing chargebacks, refunds, returns and total sales; six months of business banking statements.

The Pros

Online casino merchant benefits include the following: easy person to person transfers, no debit/credit card or PIN use, a convenient storage solution on your PC or smartphone, traceable transactions to deter fraud.

The Cons

Due to Instabill’s focus on high risk accounts, it may feature tiered pricing, early termination fees, and PCI Compliance fees. Most complaints against Instabill are about the company’s fraud prevention policies. Merchants report cancellation of their merchant accounts or withholding funds.

0 5

iPay Total

Founded in 2018 and headquartered in London, iPay Total is an online gaming payment processor that also offers end-to-end high risk merchant solutions to customers around the world.

The Pros

Some features offered on online dating merchant accounts include: multi-bank processing (including offshore), secure payment gateway, chargeback alerts, chargeback disputes, ACH/Check 21 processing, fraud prevention and protection, and competitive processing rates (below 6%), as well as 24/7 support online or by phone.

The Cons

High risk merchant account contract terms are not disclosed to the public. iPay Total also claims to charge a set up fee of up to £4,500, an incredibly exorbitant and prohibitive amount, especially for small businesses starting out.

0 6

High Risk Solutions

Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Plantation, Florida, High Risk Solutions specialises in providing payment solutions for a wide range of high risk merchants, including online casino merchants.

The Pros

They have an extensive network of partners to prescribe the best payment solution to benefit the merchant’s business.

Other benefits include: reliable on-time payouts, processing in 150 currencies, gateways are secure/ PCI compliant, and real-time technical support.

The Cons

The company only offers a contact form in which they say they will get back in touch within 24 hours. A lot can happen during this time frame in a business and therefore, this is not a helpful option. It also provides an email address. When they will respond to that is anyone’s guess.

0 7

Radiant Pay

London-based Radiant Pay is an agency offering payment solutions to merchants across all “legal” industries, including online casino merchants. It is a leading payment solution provider in the UK, European, and Asian countries.

The Pros

Some of the advantages offered include quick approvals, partnership with banks around the world, round the clock support, affordable pricing plans, quick payouts, minimal transaction charges, no deductions from revenues, uncapped transaction volumes, multi-currency processing, low taxes, risk management solutions, and personalised consultations.

The Cons

Some complaints about the company have to do with sales agents imposing highly undesirable contract terms. It is best to read the fine print thoroughly before signing anything with this company.

0 8

Web Merchant

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Kingston upon Hull, UK, Web Merchant is platinum accredited partners with major UK, European, and Worldwide banks.

The Pros

Some of their benefits include powerful risk management tools, full reporting interface, adapted payment solutions. Dedicated support for gaming operators, sophisticated anti-fraud systems, multiple payment methods, PCI DSS specialism, transaction optimisation, 24/7 support, comprehensive anti-fraud solutions, multiple acquirers in one solution, payment solutions adapted to your needs.

The Cons

Web Merchant partners with a vast number of acquirers and banks and therefore makes it virtually impossible to know what offerings, fees, and services from the start. It is critical to know this information and not get hit with unexpected fees, courtesy of the acquiring bank.

0 9

eMerchantBroker

Based in Los Angeles, California, eMerchantBroker offers high risk processing solutions, including online casino merchant accounts.

The Pros

EMB offers custom-made paid solutions, excellent customer service, approval rates between 24 and 48 hours, chargeback management tools, PCI-compliant payment gateways, as well as fraud filters.

The Cons

Very little information about the standard contract. This could only mean that the contract terms vary widely from merchant to merchant. There are early termination fees that are up to $295 for 1 year contracts and up to $595 for 3 year contracts.

10

MerchACT

Founded by leading global payment expert Patricia B. Weber and payments industry veteran, Jared Ronski, MerchACT has been providing payment solutions to high risk industries for 15 years.

Headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, MerchACT has been specialising in online casino merchant accounts for 15 years.

The Pros

Some of the benefits and features of their merchant accounts include: in-house support, PCI Compliant gateway, fraud tools, chargeback management and reporting, no application or setup fees, MerchACT directly processes the merchant account, long-term partnership through life of the account, assistance with global expansion, multi-currency options, SSL Encrypted Servers, all major credit card acceptance, recurring billing, safe and simple API system, and high volume merchant account facility.

The Cons

The only way to get in contact with the company is via email or the contact page on their website. Merchants need more ways to be able to speak to an actual person, especially for more complex issues. Chat and a direct line to a representative would be highly beneficial.

Furthermore, their acquiring banks are known to terminate merchant accounts based on volatility of sales.

Provider of the Month

Although high risk merchant accounts typically have higher rates and fees, they still can provide excellent customer support and helpful products that can facilitate your online casino business.
To obtain a casino and online gaming merchant account, merchants need to fill out an application and provide all necessary documentation to prove that they are operating legitimately. They must also demonstrate a secure operational website with terms, conditions clearly stated for their customers.
Although approval is not guaranteed, being well-informed and prepared before applying for an online casino merchant account can only increase the chances for approval.