The United Kingdom Bans Gambling With Credit Cards

• The ban applies to all forms of gambling including land-based and online sports betting.
• The United Kingdom Gambling Commission estimates that 800,000 bettors use credit cards to fund their gambling accounts.
• The ban will take effect on April 14, 2020.

LONDON - The United Kingdom has one of the safest and regulated sports betting markets in the entire world and they recently made a major change to their law that could send ripple waves throughout the international gambling community.

The United Kingdom’s gambling commission which regulates and polices all forms of legal gambling in the country has banned all credit cards from being used to keep bettors from gambling with money they do not have.

The ban will be considered law on April 14 and the British Gambling Commissions review of online gambling played a role in the ban being placed. The review estimated that 800,000 bettors used credit cards to fund their gambling habits.

UK Gambling Commission Chief Executive Neil McArthur poke on minimizing the risk of gambling to the public.

“Credit card gambling can lead to significant financial harm. The ban that we have announced today should minimize the risks of harm to consumers from gambling with money they do not have.” He also added, “Research shows that 22% of online gamblers using credit cards are problem gamblers, with even more suffering some form of gambling harm.”

While the British government is taking steps to ensure the safety of their citizens' many other countries haven’t followed suit yet and it remains unclear if other governments will implement a similar ban.

The British government will also pour money into helping rehabilitate problem gamblers as evidenced by their Culture Minister Helen Whately.

“In the past year we have introduced a wave of tougher measures, including cutting the maximum stake on fixed odds betting terminals, bringing in tighter age and identity checks for online gambling and expanding national specialist support through the NHS Long Term Plan. We have also secured a series of commitments from five leading gambling operators that will include £100 million funding towards treatment for problem gamblers.”

While we await the result of the ban, it is not expected to hurt sportsbooks' revenue flows at all. If the ban is successful in a major betting market like the United Kingdom’s, then that could mean a similar ban could be on the way for online casinos in the United States.