The Synergy Between Cryptocurrency And Sports Betting

The Synergy Between Cryptocurrency And Sports Betting

Cryptocurrency and sports betting is a marriage made in heaven. Never before have two industries collided to produce such a fantastic, game-changing landscape as the one witnessed with the use of crypto in sports gambling. Sports betting has been around for centuries, especially for established sports like horse racing, but cryptocurrency is just over a decade old. Both have experienced exponential growth in recent times, and the intersection between the pair bears fantastic benefits for bookmakers and punters in equal measure. Secure transactions are one of the critical advantages of using crypto in sports betting, but there are plenty more pros. This post takes a closer look at the highly dynamic developments in the crypto sports gambling world, and attempts to forecast what we might see in the near future.

Crypto Transactions In Sports Betting

Not too long ago, punters could only use traditional payment methods when transacting with their bookmakers. Looking back to when online betting had either not come into being or was underdeveloped, people used to visit physical betting shops and use cash to place wagers. Can you imagine that scenario? In later years, many cashless methods were invented to go hand in hand with the advent of online sports betting. These included online banking and wallets such as Paypal, Neteller, and Moneybookers. These came with obvious upsides over the cash method, but cryptocurrency is proving even better.

Blockchain Secures Sports Betting Transactions

Cryptocurrency is based on blockchain technology. This is a transaction method where all transactions are recorded on a publicly accessible ledger. Each user - in this case, punters and bookmakers - can only make transactions if they have their own unique key for access to the network. This makes it practically impossible to hack into anyone’s account, let alone be able to access or steal their money. Compared to other payment methods involving fiat currency, crypto offers incomparable security. Cases of people’s personal or financial info being stolen and used to commit fraud on the internet have become all too common in recent years. However, when transacting using crypto, one is practically immune to hacking, allowing punters to rest easy, knowing that their betting accounts are safe and sound.

Crypto Offers Anonymity

The security of cryptocurrency is further enhanced by blockchain technology's superb anonymity afforded to users. Yes, transactions are recorded on a shared ledger/database, and this ledger is made publicly available to all users on the network. However, there is a catch in that no personal info could uniquely identify any user in real life. This situation is starkly different from fiat payment methods, where users generally have to provide plenty of personal information - bank account numbers, official names, social security numbers, phone numbers, etc. - to banks, sportsbooks, and online wallet websites. In the unfortunate case where a hacker gets a hold of this information - which has happened rather often - the punter suddenly finds themselves at the mercy of a ruthless cybercriminal who will stop at nothing to steal their winnings.

Crypto Betting Future Outlook

Cryptocurrency and blockchain are still in their infancy, which means that the use of crypto in sports betting still has much room to grow. As more and more people appreciate the advantages of these digital currencies, we’re likely to see more sportsbooks accepting cryptocurrency deposits and withdrawals. One can also expect to see crypto-only betting websites and a massive leap in the volume of bets made using crypto in the next few years.