Best Payment Methods at Canadian Online Bookmakers

You won’t be able to place a bet with an online bookmaker unless you first fund your account. To do this, you must transfer your money electronically and this involves using a payment processor. Fortunately, Canadians have a great selection of payment methods available. Most allow you to safely and securely make instant deposits and fast withdrawals. If you are looking for the safest payment option for you, then you are at the right place. Read on to find out about some of the most trusted payment providers that offer their services to Canadians.

What is the Most Secure Payment Method?

Anyone who conducts financial transactions over the internet wants to be certain that those transactions are safe and secure. They don’t want to worry about having their information compromised and then exploited by nefarious third parties. Such an event can cause a lot of misery for years. Thanks to modern technology, online deposits and withdrawals at online betting sites are highly secure. Transactions are safeguarded by various security technologies such as state-of-the-art firewalls and SSL encryption.

While most payment methods are safe, some have advanced security features that make them a little more immune than others. For instance, major credit cards come with very strong fraud prevention features including passwords and buyer protection. With buyer protection, you can get the charges reversed if they were made fraudulently. There are plenty of excellent eWallets that provide maximum security as well.

In addition to the transactions being secure, users do not need to provide any private information when they use an eWallet. Using vouchers and cryptocurrencies don’t require you to divulge any sensitive information either. Like credit cards, the best eWallets such as PayPal, Skrill, and Payoneer offer buyer protection.

How Long Do Bookmaker Withdrawals Take?

There are a couple of factors that combine to determine how long it takes to receive your money when you make a withdrawal at an online sportsbook. For starters, unlike deposits which are usually processed instantly and automatically, withdrawals are often reviewed and processed manually. This is known as the pending period.

While the more reputable bookmakers do their best to process withdrawal requests as soon as possible, many of them do it within 24 hours. However, some will keep your withdrawal pending for 48 hours or even longer. Be sure to read the site’s terms and conditions regarding withdrawals before you sign up. You don’t want to find out that your bookmaker has a five-day pending period.

Another factor that plays a role in withdrawal times is the payment option you use. By and large, the best bookmakers will have your funds delivered to an eWallet within a day, but some of them can take two or three days to get it to you. Bank transfer and credit/debit card withdrawals take a little longer. You can expect to wait anywhere from three to five business days. As a point of interest, those who use cryptocurrencies can sometimes receive payment within minutes because those transactions are peer-to-peer.

Sportsbook Transaction Fees

Let’s start with the fees associated with making a deposit. It is very rare that a bookmaker will charge you anything to make a deposit, but that doesn’t mean they are free. You will almost certainly be dinged by your payment provider. After all, that’s how they make their money. If you use a credit card, there’s a good chance that you will be charged a transaction fee. This fee will vary depending on what type of credit card you use and the institution that issued it to you.

The biggest surprise could come in the form of a cash advance fee. Naturally, such a fee would not apply if you used a debit card because debit cards only allow you to access the money you actually have in your bank account. One of the cheapest payment methods is using an eWallet. While the fees vary depending on which eWallet you use, they are usually a percentage or two of the deposit amount.

You will probably have to pay fees to make a bookmaker withdrawal. A few bookies will charge a small percentage for each withdrawal. However, the vast majority of them will allow you at least one free withdrawal per month. Subsequent withdrawals are then subject to a small fee. Your payment provider shouldn’t charge anything for receiving funds. You should make a point of checking with your sportsbook and payment provider to find out about the fees you face for deposits and withdrawals.

Bookies that Accept Trustly

Trustly is a trustworthy Swedish-based payment provider that has been operating since 2008. Many Canadian sports bettors have probably seen the company’s logo at various online sportsbooks, but they likely haven’t used it. That’s because Trustly only recently started offering its services to Canadians in 2020. Compared with some of the more established providers like PayPal which is used in over 200 countries, Trustly is currently only available in about 30 countries although that number should rise as the company aggressively expands its reach.

Trustly is a payment window that works by transferring funds directly to and from your bank account. As such, you don’t need to open an account. Simply select Trustly when you make a deposit or withdrawal, and then follow the instructions. Even though this method requires you to provide personal details and banking information, you can rest assured that these transactions are very safe and secure. With the latest security features including two-factor authorization, there is very little risk of fraud. You can expect to pay a fee of 1.5% on your transactions.

Bookies that Accept Paysafecard

Paysafecard is an ideal solution for those who have neither a bank account nor a credit card. It is essentially a voucher that you can purchase online or at retail outlets such as department stores, drug stores, and gas stations. This payment option has been popular since it was first offered in 2000. You can buy Paysafecard vouchers in various denominations. Once purchased, your voucher will have a 16-digit PIN code on it.

You can then log into your online bookmaker account select Paysafecard from the deposit options. Enter the amount you wish to deposit, your 16-digit code, and complete the transaction. You don’t have to use the Paysafecard’s entire balance. Think of the 16-digit code as a bank account number. You can monitor your remaining balance online and use it to make other purchases or deposits.

There are no fees involved in purchasing or using your Paysafecard. However, you will incur a small fee if your Paysafecard is dormant for 12 months. Another great thing about this payment method is that you don’t need to provide any personal or financial information to buy it or use it.

Bookies that Accept Bitcoin

With Bitcoin leading the way, the cryptocurrency boom over the past decade has revolutionized the way people pay for things. While many of the larger bookmakers have yet to add Bitcoin to their lists of payment options, some of them jumped on the bandwagon years ago. Furthermore, some sites only accept Bitcoin.

From an operator’s point of view, Bitcoin has quite a few benefits. One of the main plusses is that Bitcoin transactions are peer-to-peer meaning that processing transactions is significantly more cost-effective than it is with traditional payment providers. The biggest drawback may be that the value of cryptocurrencies can fluctuate wildly. If they accepted a Bitcoin deposit worth $1,000 on one day, there is a possibility that Bitcoin’s value could drop the next day leaving the site to absorb a loss.

Bitcoin users also benefit from using Bitcoin. Deposits are almost instant and withdrawals can be conducted nearly as fast at some sites. On top of that, Bitcoin transactions are highly secure and virtually anonymous. This is immensely helpful to people who live in regions that don’t allow online gambling. Even better is that some sites offer Bitcoin bettors significantly higher bonuses as well.

Bookies that Accept Neteller

Neteller was created in Canada back in 1999, but it has since moved its base of operations to the Isle of Man. Neteller is an electronic wallet and it is one of the most widely used payment providers in Canada. Users simply open a free Neteller account online and then fund it using various methods such as a credit card, debit card, or electronic bank transfer. You can even use one of many other eWallets to load your Neteller account. In turn, those funds can then be used to make deposits at any of the many online bookies that support Neteller as one of their payment methods.

Neteller is highly secure and convenient, but the fees are generally a bit higher than they are for many other payment options. Typically, this provider charges a fee of 2.5% for deposits. However, they usually won’t charge you when you make your bookmaker deposit. Neteller charges a flat $10 USD fee for transferring your Neteller funds into your bank account. You should know that Neteller charges a monthly service fee of $5 if your account balance stays dormant for 12 months.

Bookies that Accept Skrill

Skrill is one of the most widely used eWallets on the planet. It was known as Moneybookers when it was launched in 2001, but it officially changed to Skrill in 2013. By 2011, there were over 25 million people worldwide using Skrill at approximately 120,000 businesses including online bookmakers. This service is available in over 130 countries and it supports 40 currencies including the Loonie. If your sportsbook accepts eWallet payments, it will almost certainly have Skrill listed among its payment methods.

Opening a Skrill account is fast, easy, and free. The fees associated with using Skrill are quite reasonable too. Canadians can expect to pay a 2.5% fee when they load their Skrill account. They can then use those funds to make deposits at online sportsbooks. Once a withdrawal has been processed and the money is in your Skrill account, Canadians are hit with a modest fee of a little over $8.50 CAD to withdraw those funds into their bank account. Conveniently enough, you can avoid this fee by using a Skrill card to make cash withdrawals at selected ATMs.

Bookies that Accept Visa/Mastercard

Visa and Mastercard remain among the most widely used and most highly secure payment options around. These giants of the credit card world are accepted almost anywhere you go and they have been the go-to option at online sportsbooks since online betting came into existence. They are issued by financial institutions such as banks and credit unions. If you do not qualify for a credit card, most banks now offer Visa and Mastercard debit cards. These work in the same way that credit cards do except that you may only access the funds available in your bank account.

Some of the security features on credit cards include holograms, embedded chips, and password protection. Transactions are protected by the most modern SSL encryption technology and anti-fraud teams monitor transactions around the clock looking for suspicious activity. If you happen to fall victim to bogus charges, Visa and Mastercard offer buyer protection that enables you to get a refund.

Credit card transaction fees vary depending on the type of card you have and the issuing institution. Make sure you read the terms and conditions of your credit card provider. You don’t want to get stung by those pesky cash advance fees.

Conclusion

Modern technology has made it easy to move money around. It has also made it a lot safer. Nevertheless, no matter what method you ultimately decide to use, you need to take certain steps to protect yourself from falling victim to identity theft and fraud. Always make sure you are dealing with a secure site that uses the latest security technology. Understand what fees your payment provider will levy, and what type of additional protection they offer. Never divulge your password and avoid performing transactions on open public Wi-Fi networks. Doing this will ensure your sports betting adventure gets off to a safe and secure start.