Paysafecard

In our overview of banking methods at online casinos, we also mention prepaid cards. The premier prepaid card service is Paysafecard, a company originally founded in Austria. At online casinos, Paysafecard is the most popular prepaid method to use when making deposits. Here you’ll learn more about this payment option.

A little background

Paysafecard was founded all the way back in 2000 in Austria. The four founders of the company had the idea that customers should have a payment option that allowed for complete anonymity, which would also not require them to give out their bank or credit card details. Thus, this prepaid system was established.

Initially, customers who wanted to use prepaid cards could purchase these at retail stores. Later they would use their prepaid vouchers for purchases online.

At first, the service was only available in Austria and Germany. By 2004 however, the company had expanded into Greece, Spain, Slovenia, Slovakia, and the UK. The company was not just expanding geographically, they also wanted to make their product more convenient and introduced e-vouchers. Now, Paysafecard’s prepaid cards could be purchased online as well.

By 2010, Paysafecard had expanded to Argentina in South America and continued on to Mexico and the USA. Of course, expansion continued around Europe as well and the service was now truly international.

Eventually, Paysafecard obtained a license from MasterCard. This meant that they were able to issue payment methods that were based on the MasterCard service and could be used as prepaid MasterCards.

Whilst Skrill bought Paysafecard in 2013, the company still operates under its own brand name but is now a subsidiary of Skrill. That’s something very few people are aware of.

Nowadays, Paysafecard is available in over 40 countries, including India, and in more than 20 currencies.

How do you use Paysafecard?

First of all, there is no need to have a Paysafecard account. Whilst there is no need, it is possible to create an account. It all depends on how you use Paysafecard and whether or not you want to purchase a voucher online and keep all your PINs in one place.

The straightforward way of obtaining a Paysafecard is to go to a local retailer, buy a voucher with the amount you prefer and use the 16-digit PIN on it when you want to make a deposit at your online casino. That 16-digit PIN closely resembles a credit card number and is used in a similar way. Except, it is a one-off PIN that has the value of your chosen amount associated with it, which is then used to top up your online casino account.

Similarly, you can use this PIN for other online payments where Paysafecard is a possible payment option.

By the way, you can keep using that PIN until the funds you put on that voucher are used up. It’s not necessary to use them all at once. You can re-use the PIN several times if you prefer.

So, if you don’t want to have a Paysafecard account, you don’t need one and never will.

If you do want to keep all your Paysafecard vouchers in one place and frequently purchase them online, then it is worth considering signing up at Paysafecard. It is still not necessary to add your credit card details to the account, mind you. When you purchase a new voucher, you will need to enter your payment details. But you don’t need to save them to your account.

The main advantage of having an account is the ability to keep all your PINs in one place and to have an overview of how much money they have available. If you happen to use Paysafecard extensively, you may find this handy. But like we said, it’s not necessary to have such an account if you only use prepaid cards occasionally.

How to deposit with Paysafecard at online casinos

A vast majority of online casinos will offer Paysafecard as a payment option. Using it is super easy. Simply head on over to your cashier, choose the amount you want to deposit and then pick Paysafecard as your preferred method of payment.

You’ll be asked to enter your 16-digit PIN. The amount you’ve chosen to add to your online casino account will now be deducted from your voucher and you can start playing. This is an instant transaction and doesn’t usually incur fees. If you have funds remaining on your voucher, you can re-use it next time

The main thing to be aware of when choosing this as your deposit method is that you won’t be able to use it for withdrawals. In such cases, withdrawals are usually processed via bank transfer. That’s often the preferred method of online casinos, mind you, so you probably won’t get to make a different choice. Plus, the casino will still want to check your ID when you want to make your first withdrawal to make sure that the winnings are indeed yours to claim.

What are the advantages of using Paysafecard?

Well, Paysafecard works with many companies that offer special deals when using it as a payment option. You may not get a special casino bonus out of it, but perhaps another useful deal is available. If you want to know more, you can always sign up for the newsletter and learn more about promotions and news that way.

Of course, the anonymity of your bank details when using Paysafecard is the main appeal. There’s no need to enter banking or credit card details and you can simply choose an available amount to make a deposit. It offers security and peace of mind. At the same time, it also gives you good control over your funds. Load up your Paysafecard with the maximum amount you can afford to lose (when playing at online casinos that should be your default mindset) and then use it for your deposits as you see fit.

Mind you, when you happen to win and want to withdraw, you will have to supply your bank account details to your online casino, but in that case, they are only authorized to deposit your wins and not withdraw anything.

By the way, if someone else should get a hold of your PIN and use it, your funds are protected under insurance. This is especially true if you keep all your information in your Paysafecard account.

Another advantage is the wide availability of Paysafecard as a payment option not just at online casinos but online retailers as well.

And the disadvantages?

When it comes to using Paysafecard as a deposit method at online casinos, you are looking at two disadvantages. The first one we already mentioned: you can’t use it for withdrawals.

The other one may impact your ability to claim bonus offers at an online casino. Some online casinos don’t allow deposits made with Paysafecard to claim the welcome bonus or other such offers. This is always specifically mentioned in the bonus terms, however. So, you will know in advance whether that might be the case. In our reviews of online casinos, we mention if that is the case.