What you need to know about Bitcoin Betting

In many ways bitcoin heralds a return to the golden age of online sports betting, which is why so many people love it. Most of the major sportsbooks now accept bitcoin, as it is the world’s largest cryptocurrency. You can also find plenty of bitcoin-only sportsbooks, and some offer sharper lines because they do not have to pay handling fees to banks.

The only downside is the volatility of bitcoin. It can suffer sharp decreases in value, which erodes your winning margin. Yet bitcoin has been generally on an upward curve for a while now, and it is also possible to negate its volatility by quickly converting your winnings into dollars once your bet has been settled. This guide will teach you how to purchase bitcoin, how to create a wallet and deposit to a sportsbook, how to sell bitcoin, and how to find great sportsbooks that accept bitcoin.

The most common way to purchase bitcoin is via an exchange. Coinbase is the world’s number one crypto platform, which makes it simple and safe to buy, sell and hold bitcoin. It takes around 10 minutes to sign up for a Coinbase account. Head over to Coinbase.com and click on “Get Started” at the top right corner of the page. Review the User Agreement and Privacy Policy terms, and then enter your personal details. You will need to provide your name, address, email address, cell phone number, before clicking on “I agree to the User Agreement and Privacy Policy” and then “Create Account”.

​You will then be sent a confirmation link to verify your email address so you can set up your account. Once you’ve verified your email address you will then be redirected to a page that requires you to verify your phone number. That should be easy enough, just type your phone number to receive a confirmation code through a text message.

You can choose an individual or business account, and enter a payment method, which allows you to purchase cryptocurrency like bitcoin using your bank account. You can either securely login to your banking website to verify your checking account, or choose for two micro-deposits to be made to your account before you can purchase bitcoin. Coinbase will also send you an SMS code to complete the verification process.

Then you can begin purchasing bitcoin and other digital coins on Coinbase. Click on the “Buy” tab, choose bitcoin and enter the amount you wish to purchase. It will then be credited to your account. There are other exchanges, but Coinbase is the most popular and it has built up a reputation for safety, security and fairness. You can alternatively browse a peer-to-peer directory, while there are also bitcoin ATMs in more than 70 countries.

The next step involves creating a wallet at a site like blockchain.info, which you can use to send bitcoin to a sportsbook. This takes just a minute or two to complete. You simply enter your email address, create a password and click continue. Your wallet is then created, and you will be assigned a unique 32-character code, which is the payment address for your wallet.

A wallet gives you added privacy and helps you wager anonymously online with various different sportsbooks. It is better to use a wallet than to simply deposit directly from Coinbase, as it protects your identity.

Visit your favorite sportsbook and click on the “Deposit” tab. It will list the deposit methods for you to choose from, and you can click on Bitcoin. Enter the amount you wish to deposit and click “Next”. You will then be given a bitcoin payment address that you can send your BTC to. Copy that address and then go back over to Blockchain.info. Click on the “Send” tab and paste the address into the toolbar that appears, then enter the amount of BTC you are sending and click “Send”. Your deposit should be completed within minutes.

One of the greatest benefits of betting with bitcoin is the speed of withdrawals. Online sportsbooks rated A and A+ on SBR’s best sportsbooks page pay bettors their winnings in 24 hours or less. This cuts out the mind-numbing waiting times that bettors have had to endure for many years when the payout can be made to your Blockchain.info payment address. You can then transfer it on to your Coinbase account. You then simply cash out by withdrawing from your Coinbase account to your fiat bank account. It typically takes two business days and Coinbase will charge you a 1.5% fee for bank withdrawals.

Visit our Betting Sites guide to find A+ and A-rated sportsbooks that have built up a strong reputation for fairness, transparency, safety and security over many years. We only recommend sports betting sites that will pay you out promptly and fairly, and we advise you on the rogue operators that you should avoid. Our A+ and A rated sportsbooks all have the liquidity to pay you out when you win, and they are all strong when it comes to customer service, deposits, withdrawals, quality of the lines and the general user friendliness of their interfaces.

To the left of the screen you will see a tab that says “Bitcoin”. Click on it and you will be presented with a range of options. If you check the box that reads “Accepts Bitcoin”, it will filter out all the books that do not accept BTC. You can then choose from a number of highly regarded online betting sites that allow you to deposit and withdraw bitcoin, including Bovada, BetOnline, Bookmaker, Heritage Sports, Bodog Sportsbook, Betcris and more.

These leading sportsbooks all accept bitcoin because they know how important it is to the modern day bettor. Our handy guide also tells you how much of a deposit bonus you will receive when you sign up for an account, how long each operator has been online for and any SBR rating changes it has received. If you want more information, you can read an in-depth review of each sportsbook before deciding which is the right one for you.