The digital-era is one that it’s in full flow. Pretty much anything and everything can be done online these days and, with it, the technology is increasing to grow. Digital banking is another one of those sectors that are making the switch online. The transition has become popular, especially with millennials and the industry is growing at an alarming rate. What’s been most interesting to see is that it has forced some of the already established banks to make more of an effort with things like online banking and even mobile banking to keep up.
The platform works well for online betting given that many people will be more than comfortable with how the online marketplace works as a result. This has also seen a sharp up-turn in the number of people who are now using digital banking to fund their online betting accounts.
How Do Digital Bank Accounts Work?
The main difference between a digital bank account and a traditional bank is that there is no brick and mortar bank that you can visit. Everything that you do is online, be it via their website or via their banking app. It allows people much more freedom to make changes on the go and cuts out those frustrating meetings or long processes that many traditional banks have. For example, digital banking allows you to instantly change the pin on your debit card via their mobile app, a process that would take several days with a regular bank.
Digital banking is intended to save the user time and given the features that are available to them via these apps, this is one of the key areas that people have been impressed by. The fact that you can also do things like split bills, trade cryptocurrency and view spending forecasts are just a few features that have been welcomed additions.
Why Do They Work Well for Betting?
One of the reasons that we like digital bank accounts is that you can use them alongside your main account and only for betting transactions. This creates a separate wallet that you can access at any time and it allows you to keep track of your spending and even returns from betting.
Keeping it separate also gives off other benefits as well, with the main one being that any betting transactions are kept off your bank statement. Whilst betting is very much legal in the UK, there are some instances where it would be good to keep these transactions hidden. A mortgage application would be a great example of this as some mortgage companies can be funny about betting transactions appearing on statements.
A digital account will also allow you to access all the features and functions that many bank accounts do, which means you can treat it as one “master” betting wallet. These features include:
- Easy sign up process
- No credit checks
- Debit card included
- Full app functionality & statement access
- Mobile notifications of any transactions, aiding security
- Full use overseas
- Fully regulated by the FCA
Another feature that we really liked is a feature that allows you to block transactions to gambling companies. Monzo, one of the biggest digital banking apps, allows users to specifically block transactions to gambling websites if they choose to. The reason we like this is that it really helps problem gamblers from staying away if they block the transaction at the banking stage rather than just closing accounts, which of course means they can reopen in a different name.
The feature can be used over a certain period of time that can be set by the user and it means that if they feel like it’s all getting a bit too much, they can have a cooling off feature. To be honest, all banks should have this, but kudos to Monzo for taking the lead on it.
Which Is the Best Digital Bank to Use for Betting?
There are a number of digital banks that are cropping up right now. There are some that are definitely better than others, which is worth noting and some may offer features that suit some people more than others. The table below has been taken from Moneysupermarket.com and these guys are pretty hot when it comes to information on this topic. The banks included are Atom, Monzo, Sterling, Revolut and Curve.
| Atom | Monzo | Sterling | Revolut | Curve | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real Time Spending Notification | N | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| 24 Hour In-App Support | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Freeze/Unfreeze Card | N | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| FSCS Protected | Y | Y | Y | N | N |
| Overdraft | N | Y | Y | N | N |
| In-App Mortgages | Y | N | N | N | N |
| Free Cash Withdrawal | N | Y | Y | N | Y |
| Saving Pots/Jars | N | N | Y | Y | N |
| Free Payments Abroad | N | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Direct Debits/Standing Orders | N | Y | Y | Y | N |
As you can see, each card has their own positives and negatives. What works for one might not for another, so this should give you some idea of which one might work best for you.
What to Do If Your Transaction from Digital Bank to Bookmaker Gets Declined?
There have been some reports as of late that have highlighted an issued with some digital banks and processing payments with bookmakers, notably Revolut. The problem is that they seem to have blocked gambling payments to just some bookmakers, not all, which has led to problems for many users.
Whilst this seems as though the company has blocked these transactions, in fact from an official statement from Revolut, this is not the case. You see, these digital banks use third party companies to process their transactions, all of which are obviously fully regulated and subjected to extremely high test from the FCA. In fact, some are reported to be linked to high street banks, as well.
The digital banks themselves have not blocked the payments, although they have admitted that there has been a problem processing payments. Here is a statement that was released by Revolut regarding this:
1. We use a 3rd party merchant to process payments and refunds.
2. The 3rd party merchant suddenly ceased every gambling/bookie related transaction without a proper notice toward Revolut breaching our agreement. We are currently in an active dispute with them over this.
3. The funds have arrived but are being held by our payment partner we are already working on resolving this, but we do not have an ETA how long this will take and due to the negative internal communication we received we are advising all our customers to request a chargeback from the bookies.
In any case, Revolut will top up your account from our own funds soon as this dispute is ongoing. Whilst initially this seemed like an issue for the company and their ties to the gambling industry, this is not the case and it seems like more of a short-term problem than anything else. If you are having problems, then it’s worth contacting your digital bank account and finding out more info on this.
How Safe Are Digital Bank Accounts?
This is probably the number one question that we see and as ever, when anything comes out solely online, especially when it’s got anything to do with banking, then people immediately (and rightly) raise concerns about safety.
The fact is that they are very safe. They are able to use technology that most brick and mortar accounts simply can’t, and this includes things like facial recognition, fingerprint scanning and voice recognition to get access. There are very few paper trails with any information on them, so it’s all online.
As we have spoken about previously, the majority of them are registered by the FCA and or the FSCS, which are the highest tier of financial protection that you can get in the UK. Atom Monzo and Sterling are all FCA and FSCS approved, whereas Revolut and Curve have FCA approval, but as of yet, not FSCS approval. It’s worth noting that the FCSC protect any savings up to £85,000 from any fraudulent activity.
Should I Use Digital Banking for All Betting Sites?
You can do. In fact, as we have already stated in the article, the best use to keep them going alongside your main account. This means that you can easily keep track of your betting from a totally separate account. It also means that you don’t have to upload any banking details of your main account that may include things like mortgages and bills online, which gives you an added layer of security.