The last decade has brought us far in terms of crypto in the online gaming industry since Bitcoin first rose to power. But how far exactly? We all know that crypto exchanges are swamped with coins, new ones being added, and some not-so-successful ones being shut down. We have even been witnessing some online casinos creating their coins or tokens. Some even offer integrated wallets. So, how does this all affect online gambling? We analysed 100 random casinos that claimed they offer their services in crypto.
The Increasing Number Of Online Casinos
If someone had asked me before I researched how many different cryptos are offered across online casinos, my answer would have been ‘around 20, maybe 30’, followed by the thought that I probably can’t name nearly as many. One hundred analysed casinos together offer 74 different cryptocurrencies! And we have to consider that these are only from casinos and not primarily sports betting sites, where some of the bigger ones are known even to include tokens like Barcelona Fan Token (BAR), Juventus Fan Token (JUV), and many others.
One would assume that most coins offered in casinos fall in the top 100 by market cap, but surprisingly only 64 % do. That means over a third of all cryptos offered are either small, relatively new, or not well-known. Casinos offer anywhere from 1 to over 50 cryptos, with the majority having between 2 and 10 different cryptocurrencies. Of course, the topmost offered crypto is Bitcoin, followed by Ethereum and Litecoin, both crypto veterans. Bitcoin Cash, Tether, and Dogecoin occupy the rest of the top places. The top 11 coins also include their rank on the market cap. You can see that some casinos go to such lengths as to include the Party Of The Living Dead coin!
Types of Casinos
Because crypto gambling has evolved significantly since the beginning, making a finer segmentation of casinos is appropriate to see their differences. So we distributed casinos into the following four groups:
- Blockchain casinos: They use Blockchain technology for their services apart from accepting crypto payments (provably fair games, their coins/tokens, etc.)
- Crypto casinos: Casinos that offer only crypto payments, but other than that, don’t include Blockchain technology.
- Hybrid crypto casinos: Casinos that offer both crypto and fiat services but focus primarily on crypto
- Hybrid fiat casinos: Casinos that offer both crypto and fiat services but focus primarily on fiat
A few hybrid casinos seemed to show equal affinity towards fiat and crypto and were thus included in both categories. The above chart nicely shows that the online gambling market is still mostly represented by Hybrid fiat casinos, offering 5 or 6 different cryptos. But the next in line are already blockchain casinos, offering, on average, 11 different cryptos and having a much wider distribution regarding how many coins they offer. This could indicate a fair share of crypto players who prefer the tailored services provided by blockchain casinos. Interesting fact: the outlier to the right is BC.GAME, who offered a little over 50 different cryptocurrencies in October 2021 and already offered over 70 different cryptocurrencies in January 2022!
Most new casinos that have opened their doors for the first time in the past two years are still Hybrid fiat casinos, targeting mostly fiat players, while the majority of the blockchain casinos were established between 2017 and 2018, after the first ‘Crypto Boom,’ and didn’t exist before 2013. Note that the few casinos before 2010 didn’t initially accept crypto because it didn’t exist yet, but they started accepting at least Bitcoin somewhere on the way. The above chart proves that there is no more online gambling without crypto. Sure, casinos focusing on fiat still dominate and probably will for some time.
But finding crypto-accepting casinos was an effort only a few years ago. Today, it’s almost a rule that new casinos don’t come out without accepting at least Bitcoin, if not more cryptocurrencies. Quite a few third-party payment providers joined in on the race, offering fiat to crypto (and vice versa) conversions for new players who aren’t used to crypto. It’s hard to turn a blind eye to the fact that crypto is becoming the number one payment option in online gambling everywhere, where domestic governments don’t strictly prohibit or limit crypto transactions.
The future of online casinos
Some crypto casinos have already started creating their coins or tokens, which seems to be the next step in online crypto gambling. The first ones replaced the casino’s internal currency as complementary points or a play-for-fun currency. But lately, casinos have been developing full-stack coins that can be bought, sold, mined, and in some cases, even exchanged in some crypto exchanges.
We’re still waiting for a casino to make a breakthrough with its coin and join the mainstream cryptos, which could open the online gambling market to many new people and opportunities. NFTs are also growing in popularity as we speak. Although many people don’t know yet what to do with those, it’s only a matter of time before they find their way to casinos, enhancing the crypto gambling experience.
Conclusion: What’s the right casino for me?
With the growing popularity of online casinos, especially those that accept cryptocurrencies, you might get overwhelmed with plenty of options. We can advise you to do your research when choosing the right casino for you. Whether you are a beginner in the industry or not, you should be able to assess which platforms will give you real-world benefits carefully. And, of course, gamble responsibly. We know that crypto casinos are getting more appealing, given that they give so much freedom to players. But this doesn’t mean that you can explore platforms irresponsibly. After all, cryptocurrencies are money you wouldn’t want to lose.
