Revolut is set to suspend credit card payments to online gambling platforms in Ireland.
The decision of the British financial technology company that specialises in banking services has come after an investigation of the Irish Independent found that some gambling operators are circumventing the gambling credit card ban by allowing such payments to be processed through contactless mobile applications such as Revolut, Google Pay and Apple Pay. As Casino Guardian reported earlier, the use of credit cards for gambling transactions is not allowed on the territory of Ireland under gambling industry rules.
A spokesperson for the payment transactions processor confirmed for the Irish Independent that Revolut is planning to suspend the use of credit cards on gambling websites in Ireland, in the same manner in which the company already does that in the UK. The measure will come in addition to the 48-hour gambling block that Revolut users can select as part of the measures to protect themselves from gambling-related harm.
Currently, Revolut has about 1.5 million Irish users. The banking app allows customers to fund their accounts through either a debit card, a credit card or bank withdrawal.
The app features technology that can identify which Revolut payments are carried out specifically through a credit card and so payments to online gambling platforms are blocked. For the time being, the company uses this system to block debit and credit cards from being used for gambling site payments in the UK.
Irish Bookmakers Circumvent Credit Card Ban through Untraceable Payments Processed by Third-Party Payment Apps
As the Irish Independent reported earlier this week, some of the largest betting firms in Ireland have been using a loophole allowing them to use third-party payment apps to process credit card payments to gambling websites. Operators claim that gambling companies cannot sort out which payments are funded by debit or credit cards, especially when the app of a third-party processor such as Revolut is used.
Although this practice has allowed local gambling firms to pretty much circumvent the ban on the use of credit cards for gambling transactions, the Irish Bookmakers Association has noted that they had not technically violated the rules.
On the other hand, a spokesperson for Ireland’s Junior Justice Minister James Browne has unveiled that the use of credit cards for gambling through the aforementioned mobile applications is not in the scope of the minister’s supervision. According to the spokesperson, the matter fell in the competence of the Irish Bookmakers Association. Also, the independent gambling regulatory body will be given the right to outlaw the use of credit cards if, at the time it is up and running, it has the opinion that such a form of payment contributes to gambling addiction and gambling-related harm.
Currently, online gambling accounts for a considerable part of the overall income of betting firms in Ireland. A recent report into the sector showed that about 39% of the multi-billion euro gambling sector of the country is generated by online gambling operations. Almost 50% of online bets are processed through smartphone gambling apps.
On the other hand, a problem gambling expert has noted that the actual number of gambling addicts in Ireland is way higher than the ones cited in official estimates. According to the founder and CEO of Problem Gambling Ireland, Barry Grant, the actual number of problem gamblers in the country is possibly up to three times the figure of between 30,000 and 40,000 given by the official estimates.
- Author
Olivia Cole
