Online gambling deposits are way too much work!

[LANE13]

Hello fellow Meisters,

Is it just me or is depositing at a casino a real pain for Canadians now too? I live in Canada and am finding that
when I used my credit card to make a few deposits, the bank that issues the card sent me a letter in the mail saying that the banks security dept. found "suspicious" charges were being made online using my card number.
(Read between the lines: don't use your credit card for online gambling or we will punish you!)

I checked my statement and found the only "suspicious" charges were made by me for online casino credits.

While I am glad that the credit card issuer is looking out for me, I was freaked out that they are keeping track of my purchase activities.

I have not used my cc at all for online gambling since I got that letter nor will I ever again. I am afraid they may take my card away from me because I use it sometimes for online gambling.
To solve this problem and still be able to gamble online I opened a savings account at a totally different bank from the one I now use so that I could use "Use My Bank" for online gambling and my bank that I am now with would not know about my bad girl behavior.

Well after I opened the new account I phoned the 1 800 number at the new bank and told them to add "Use My Bank" as a "personal payee" as instructed by "use my bank" web site.

I also figured that this would help me stay within my gambling budget, which it did because I would physically have to go into the bank and make a deposit so that I would have enough for gambling.
On the days I felt like gambling I would go into the bank and make a deposit usually for 50 dollars, enough for a night of gambling.

This seemed to work pretty good for a while , until I started to feel like a criminal every time I would go into the
bank to make a deposit, the bank tellers can see your banking transactions on their screens when you give them your bank card to make a deposit, and lets face it , they know what "Use my Bank" transactions are all about. I would get the "you are a bad girl" look from the tellers.

I have also been reading other peoples posts about banks freezing online gambling cashout payments from online casinos due to the fact that online gambling is now considered to be" criminal activity" .
I know Canadians are not being prevented from online gambling yet, but you wait, it is coming!

What is the bloody point? It is way too much of a pain in the a%# and now I have to worry about my bank freezing my winnings cause it is "proceeds from criminal activity"

I really resent the banks and government telling me what I can do with my hard earned money. Meanwhile the banks are engaged in a form of criminal activity of their own called "service charges" Anyone check to see the record breaking profits the Canadian banks are making these days? I ask you fellow Meisters who are the criminals here?

I got two words for ya banks......... BITE ME!

 

[heatherad]

Hello fellow Meisters,

Is it just me or is depositing at a casino a real pain for Canadians now too? I live in Canada and am finding that
when I used my credit card to make a few deposits, the bank that issues the card sent me a letter in the mail saying that the banks security dept. found "suspicious" charges were being made online using my card number.
(Read between the lines: don't use your credit card for online gambling or we will punish you!)

I have both EcoCard and Instadebit.
I don't use EcoCard anymore because it takes 5 full business days for the funds to clear in the Ecocard account, although it is instant from the bank.
Also the fact that they have terrible customer support in the fact the only way to contact them is via phone (which is voice machine) and email. Guess you have to hit the lucky time to get an email back from them.
Now I just use Instadebit and have had no problems with it so far.
The deposits are instant and no hassel whatsoever.
I've not made a withdrawal through Instadebit as of yet so I can't offer any info on that side of it.

 

[everyday]

Yep...Credit card companies no longer accept most Casino charges. I have registered an Eco card account but haven't used it yet. Since the US ban I have been playing strictly at one Casino group using the EFT deposit option that has been working very well for me. Also withdrawing using ACH payment method. Doesn't cost me a cent and eliminates the middle man. Took a little while to work out the bugs using the ACH withdrawal method as it requires an extra digit on the Bank Account # line (US accts. have 1 more digit than Cdn accts.) but the casino Banking dept., where I play, quickly and efficently corrected the problem. Have been using the above methods for months without any problems. BUT..only use these methods with Casinos that you completely trust as you are providing them with your Banking info. I have been a VIP at this particular group for years and that trust has been established. As far as my bank is concerned, I strictly use the ATM for deposits etc., never giving a human teller the opportunity to look too closely at my account. All transactions on my statement are listed as "Ecash" with a whole lot of numbers, not a casino name in it. So if anyone did get curious, the transactions just look like Internet purchases...that's my story and I'm sticking to it lol. Haven't used the "Use my Bank" option as IMHO that just gives the participating Banks a very clear picture of who is engaged in online gambling. Wishing you good luck in finding the methods that work for you.

 

[cynthial]

the bank that issues the card sent me a letter in the mail saying that the banks security dept. found "suspicious" charges were being made online using my card number.
(Read between the lines: don't use your credit card for online gambling or we will punish you!)

I would get the "you are a bad girl" look from the tellers.

I feel for you Lane, I have had both of these things occur too. I stopped using my Bank Card for the same reason you did and I once had a little piss ant of a clerk at Western Union give me the skunk eye while giving me my winnings and then record my name and social security number in his managers book.

I think it is an outright travesty that the ridiculous laws and regulations being enforced in the States has affected you and your fellow Canadians. On behalf of all of us down here, and for what it's worth, I am sorry.

 

[KathyK]

Hi everyday!

Could you please tell me what group of online casinos are still processing ACH withdrawals? I would appreciate the info, Thank you

 

[wangpoker]

Why don't you use Moneybookers?
Now more and more casinos and poker rooms accept MB.
Although some companies don't support withdrawals by MB, they will send you checks and these checks won't be bounced by Banks in Canada.
It's better than CC and other options for Canadians.

 

[everyday]

Could you please tell me what group of online casinos are still processing ACH withdrawals? I would appreciate the info, Thank you

Hi KathyK...There are 2 groups that I trust enough to use the ACH withdrawal method aka Echeque aka EFT. They are the Palace group (Spin Palace etc.) and the Casino Rewards group (Casino Classic etc.) I have been playing primarily at the C R group as they now have tournaments available there. As I mentioned earlier, if you encounter any problems setting up your banking info on the ACH withdrawal screen, just contact CS and ask for the Banking Dept. who will set it up for you.

 

[KathyK]

Thank you! I have requested ACH from the Casino Rewards groups but they will only send me a check. I must say tho that they are the fasted when it comes to sending checks, I have a check in my hand in 10 days. I am still waiting for checks from 5 other casinos and it has been over a month now.

 

[lojo]

Kathy, I think ACH is over for US players. Canada is another story

 

[KathyK]

wahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

 

[silkprint]

I hear ya Kathy . I miss those ole ACH days myself

 

[lojo]

I hear ya Kathy . I miss those ole ACH days myself

Yip, my game took a serious dump when I lost the ability to move money where and when I wanted to. Just broke my stride somehow.
I'm glad our northern neighbors still have options, even if it's a hassle it's easier than for us.

 

[Dewberry]

I've been using Instadebit for quite a while and never had a problem with them. I have had several withdrawals from casino to Instadebit and then to my bank account and all of them have gone well. Just takes a few days to get to the bank. Great thing is - there are no fees.

There are many casinos that don't take Instadebit though and for those I use Moneybookers or a Moneymart prepaid card.

 

[LANE13]

I've been using Instadebit for quite a while and never had a problem with them. I have had several withdrawals from casino to Instadebit and then to my bank account and all of them have gone well. Just takes a few days to get to the bank. Great thing is - there are no fees.

There are many casinos that don't take Instadebit though and for those I use Moneybookers or a Moneymart prepaid card.[/QUOTE

I did not think you could use a Moneymart prepaid Mastercard for online gambling????

 

[Koitenshin]

US player here. You're not kidding about having to jump through hoops. I have to use ewalletxpress. They charge you fees just for transferring money from your bank account into their account. It's getting worse and worse I tell you.

 

[vinylweatherman]

US player here. You're not kidding about having to jump through hoops. I have to use ewalletxpress. They charge you fees just for transferring money from your bank account into their account. It's getting worse and worse I tell you.

Quite; soon the US Government will lose the ability to tell the difference between Gaming transactions and donations/receipts for "proper" criminal purposes.
The more hoops gamblers have to jump through, the worse this will get.

Easy, send $100, and when you receive $10,000 to fund your terrorist cell or whatever, just own up, "sorry M'lud*, I have a gambling problem, I'll get treatment ASAP"



UK Court Judge - no idea what you Americans call them when in the dock

 

[nielsenj]

You are quite right. Depositing to (and withdrawing from) online casinos is much work for North Americans but then again that is exactly what the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act is all about. Putting pressure on the banks to monitor money transfers from and to online gaming sites and hunting down e-wallets in order to protect the population against the immoral online gambling industry is the politics of a government that can be voted out of power next year. Please do so.

 

[lojo]

... politics of a government that can be voted out of power next year. Please do so.

We can only hope we will have the power to vote them out. And that can be read in as many ways as there are people who read it

 

[SeattleSinner]

I have also been reading other peoples posts about banks freezing online gambling cashout payments from online casinos due to the fact that online gambling is now considered to be" criminal activity" .

Where did you read this? I'd be curious to learn more about this as none of my checks have been blocked.

 

[vinylweatherman]

Where did you read this? I'd be curious to learn more about this as none of my checks have been blocked.

The biggest case was the freezing of some $55 Million paid out by Neteller to US citizens. It was known that Neteller only processes for gambling, so the case was that this $55 Million was a transfer from gambling sites, through Neteller, to US players.

There was also the case of Jackpot Factory having money frozen in transit at around the same time.
Money is only frozen if it can be traced as gambling. Your checks are probably working because they have not yet been identified as proceeds from gambling. They can't simply block ALL payments from abroad, it would harm the economy, neither can they check offshore processors too deeply too soon, there are just so many of them. At the moment, banks don't even have a specific directive to intervene, so some banks cause trouble, while others are no problem. I expect that as businesses the banks will do as little as possible in order to be seen as complying with the new law - they will not spend loads of money investigating all the offshore checks & transfers they receive.
This whole thing is a big mistake, as methods to "launder" casino deposits and withdrawals are evolving at a much faster rate due to necessity. It is often said that war causes great advances in technology, so this "war" against those who will continue to do their best to play will serve to enhance the skills and methods for money laundering. This will end up helping the REAL villans and terrorists, as they will adopt many of the methods casinos seem to be getting away with for getting funds into the US.
I knew very little about how money laundering worked when I started playing, now I have learned a great deal through seeing how casinos are working around the restrictive rules and seemingly getting away with it.

 

[GaryWatson]

I use prepaid credit cards to play online nowadays. Dont need to yet. Dont know about canada/US banking system