Another one who's doing it is smart live gaming. you can't even get a SUB if you use an e-wallet
11.3 Players that register and are connected from same IP address, of which also claim any bonus offers will have their accounts closed, winnings withheld and initial deposits refunded. Each promotion has its own terms and conditions which the player must abide by in order to qualify for the bonus or prize. Players who deposit via E-Wallets such as ( Moneybookers, Neteller or Ecocard) are not eligible to claim any Welcome bonus or other deposit bonus promotions that Smart Live Gaming offer.
The eWallets also just sit back and suck it up. THEY could do something about it, after all, it's taking business away from them. If they told these casinos that they either removed those terms, or had their ability to take ANY deposits via the eWallets removed in response, they might have a rethink.
It may however be an indication that the eWallets have lost their power because there are so many other deposit options now available.
It seems odd because card deposits present greater risks to operators because they are more easily manipulated by fraudsters. Maybe the fraud issue isn't as bad as they would have us believe, and the risk is minimal compared to the extra money they think they can make through steering players towards using credit cards. Probably true because one can gamble right up to the credit limit on the card, whereas with an eWallet, you have to have funded it before being able to use the money.
In another way though, the difference is not so great given that eWallets can be funded by credit cards.
In an earlier discussion thread about
32Red dropping weekend payments, they stated that 90% of their customers used cards, whereas only 10% used the eWallets. If this is reflected throughout the industry, then these casinos are only irritating 10% of their players, who could simply switch to using their cards just for those casinos that have these terms, and carry on using the eWallets for the rest.
It doesn't seem to be something the UKGC has considered in the forthcoming regulations, so whilst land casinos are banned from allowing chips to be bought on credit cards, it has been left up to the card issuers as to whether they allow customers to gamble on credit.
Of course, all we need is a pre paid card for eWallets that DOES allow gambling transactions, then such terms would have little effect on the player who could still use the funds in their eWallet, but still deposit via the method preferred by the casino. Neteller and Skrill both offer pre paid cards that work like credit cards or debit cards, yet block gambling transactions.