In the last couple of years, we witnessed an incredible surge in the number of cryptocurrencies on the internet causing a media frenzy. Although most people have only heard of Bitcoin, which the most widespread and popular coin in the family of more than 100 cryptocurrencies, few other coins have caught the attention of actors in the iGaming industry.
Among the hundreds of cryptocurrencies existing today, Ethereum is one of the remarkable technological breakthroughs, coming only second to bitcoin. Besides the Ether, which is the main coin used in the Ethereum blockchain, any user of the platform can develop countless new derivatives and applications. This unique characteristic makes Ethereum the perfect blockchain platform for the development of future efficient payment methods for online casinos.
Cryptocurrencies market share in 2020, estimated in $.
The iGaming industry is one of the most versatile and innovative sectors in the world. Driven by fierce competition, and the endless race to create the best gaming experience, casino software developers were among the first to integrate cryptocurrency payments into the online gaming world. Today, many online casinos grant players the option to make deposits and withdrawals with cryptocurrencies.
The reliability of the cryptocurrency blockchains handling transactions offers to online casinos the ability to propose varied and innovative payment solutions in all security.
Much like Bitcoin, Ethereum is defined as a decentralized cryptocurrency. Meaning all Ethereum transactions are processed, verified and validated on the blockchain without the involvement of banking institutions or monetary authorities.
Transactions are verified and approved by advanced computers and various bitcoin mining hardware. The whole process is referred to as mining. This non-dependency to traditional monetary institutions is one of the major attributes that give cryptocurrencies an irresistible appeal.
Like most decentralized cryptocurrencies used in instant online casinos, Ethereum offers security and complete flexibility to its users. Relying upon its novel technology, online transactions processed on the Ethereum platforms takes 15 seconds a most to be completed. In comparison, a bitcoin transaction can take up to 30 minutes.
Bitcoin is slower than traditional processors such as credit cards or most electronic payment solutions (Trustly, iDeal, Zimpler, Klarna), while with Ethereum online casino players can benefit from virtually instant and secure transactions at low coast.
Unlike bitcoin transactions, for which there is a fixed fee, the fee charged for an Ethereum transaction depends on the required bandwidth, the memory used, its complexity, and many other independent factors. Nevertheless, the transaction fee stays relatively low, compared to wire transfers or E-wallets.