Companies are given six months to adapt to the new ban on crypto and credit cards for online gambling but once the law takes into effect, violators can get fined up to $155,000.
- Australia banned cryptocurrency and credit cards for online gambling, with a six-month compliance period before facing fines up to $155,000.
- This is part of efforts to reduce gambling harm, including phasing out gambling ads in three years.
- Australians spend $55 on sports betting during a typical gambling day.
Australian citizens will no longer be able to gamble with borrowed money or digital currency due to a newly imposed ban that would bar the use of credit cards and cryptocurrency for online gambling, except for online lotteries.
This new regulation is part of the government’s broader initiative to curb gambling-related harm, including plans to phase out gambling advertising over the next three years. Companies have six months to comply with the ban, after which violators can face fines up to $155,000.
Although not always anonymous in nature, the complexity and difficulty of tracking cryptocurrency transfers compared to fiat transactions might be a key reason behind the government’s decision to ban crypto for online gambling.
Gambling Addiction in Australia
The Australian government reported that approximately three-quarters of Australian adults gambled at least once in the past 12 months leading up to March 2023, with 46% of these gamblers classified as being at some risk of gambling harm.
On average, Australians spend $55 on sports betting and $61 on race betting during a typical gambling day. The study also found that men are at higher risk since they gamble more frequently across all products (sports, racing, lotteries, casinos) compared to women.
The most popular form of gambling among Australian adults was lottery/scratches.
Size of the Crypto Gambling Market
Although crypto casinos have existed since 2012, they have only recently gained significant traction, per Tech Report. While gambling is still mostly fiat-based, crypto made up 8.5% of gross gaming revenue (GGR) for sports betting alone in 2021.
In 2023, BTC still made up the majority of all crypto-gambling transactions at 73.3%
The government’s decision to ban credit card use in online gambling aims to protect users from maxing out their credit limits or incurring unwanted debt and interest. Regarding cryptocurrency, the complexity and difficulty of tracking both transactions and their amounts, compared to fiat currency, likely influenced the government’s decision to prohibit its use in online gambling.
