Bitcoin Blackjack
There’s been a lot that has happened in the online gambling world in the US. After the three big poker sites shut down in 2011, it has become more difficult to play blackjack online. However, it is possible to play in regulated online casinos if you reside in New Jersey, Delaware and Nevada and you’re 21 years of age or older. Outside of these states – the law is not clear. However, it is also possible to gamble on blackjack and other casino games online using Bitcoin.
Best Bitcoin Blackjack Sites
How Bitcoin Works?
Bitcoin is a digital currency that, unlike dollars, euros, and pounds, is a decentralized peer-to-peer payment network, meaning it’s not tied to any central bank or physical currency. It is created by bitcoin users who “mine” for them by lending “computer power” to validate bitcoin transactions and secure the network’s public ledger. In return they receive bitcoins. The process of getting bitcoins is referred to as mining because it refers to hard working diggers that dig for resources, with the reward being gold. The digital coins can also be purchased and sold on bitcoin exchanges with US dollars and other currencies.
The Bitcoin crypto currency has been around since 2009, but it’s only in the past few years that it has really gained momentum, and Bitcoin gambling sites have gained even greater momentum. Since Bitcoin is not tied to any specific government or banking institution it cannot be traced back to you and all transaction are anonymous. Because of this, many people feel more safe playing blackjack for real money on online gambling websites accepting bitcoin deposits, especially those residing in the United States.
Is it Legal to Use Bitcoins
Legality of Bitcoins is determined by your local authorities. Currently there are three possible scenarios:
- 45% of the countries approved the use of bitcoins. Here you can find USA (where bitcoin was classified as a convertible decentralized virtual currency by US Treasury), Canada, Germany, Finland, Japan,
- 45% the topic is still ignored by regulators and there are no rules, in favor or against the use of bitcoin. Here we can find the European Union, Australia, France, Ireland, Denmark and Italy.
- The other 10% do not allow to use crypto currency For example: Russia, Jordan, Thailand.
The bottom line is that in 90% of the world you can use bitcoin as a payment methods, of course as long as you don’t use it to by illegal drugs or a shoulder fired missile. The number of companies that accept bitcoin is rapidly growing; Amazon, Subway, Dell, Ebay, Dish, Expedia, Tesla, and the public assumption is that in the next few years more and more countries will regulate the use of bitcoins.
By the way, we are all going to encounter bitcoins in one way or another. It seems that Blockchain, is the next big thing in the world of banking. Many expect it to replace the current SWIFT /ABA system. You can read an interesting article on the topic on Fortune magazine.
What are the Risks of Gambling with Bitcoins?
There are two main risks in using Bitcoins as a casino banking method: theft and fraud. By theft we mean that someone will bitcoins from your wallet. The second is that you will deposit in a wrong casino. However, if you do your homework, those can be quite easily avoided.
How to safely store bitcoins?
We will cover the topic in depth in future article, but just a brief overview. There are three ways to store your bitcoins: in a digital wallet, or in “cold storage”, which means either an offline wallet or paper wallet.
If you don’t plan to keep hundreds of bitcoins, but just need it for daily use, to play blackjack or slots or to buy something online, digital wallet is the way to go. The most recommended ones would be Coinbase and Blockchain.info. By the way, the main risk here is having a weak password, so do not use your name, birth dates or anything of that kind.
If you are dealing with bigger numbers, you can keep bitcoins on an external drive or paper wallet. We assume that if that’s the case, you already know how to do that, so we won’t cover it here.
How to avoid fraudulent casinos?
In the “early” days of bitcoin, it was in use by many fraudulent online casinos. In recent years the situation has drastically changed and there are plenty reputable casinos that accept bitcoin as a banking methods. Nevertheless, we urge you to proceed with extra caution and stick to well known and trustworthy brands. Bovada, the biggest online gambling operator on the US market, and its sister Ignition casino, are the best option.
You can find more info on how to choose and test an online casino on our real money gambling page.
Bitcoin Blackjack Casinos
Because of the gambling laws in the United States, blackjack players are taking advantage of the anonymity of the bitcoin digital currency. There are a few well known bitcoin casinos such as the aforementioned Bovada or BitStarz. These websites have very slick interfaces and offer the best odds. They are also trustworthy in terms of security, player support and the ease and speed of withdrawals. The Blackjack games available (including multi-handed and free-to-play versions) are instant play games, meaning they can be played directly in your web browser, with no download being necessary.
Now that bitcoin blackjack casinos have popped up, the game has never been more popular online. Furthermore, many new bitcoin online casinos offering blackjack have opened shop because they are riding on the popularity of bitcoin, and there is greater incentive for them as these sites don’t need to worry about credit card fraud or other chargebacks from players.
How to Buy Bitcoin
Chances are if you’re looking to play Bitcoin Blackjack, you haven’t been mining for bitcoins and looking into ways to buy the bitcoin currency. The good news is there are many ways to acquire bitcoin fairly quickly and easily. The most trusted way is to buy bitcoin from Coinbase which is a California-based Bitcoin exchange company that is listed on the NYSE. Coinbase is free to sign up for and you must link your bank account and credit card to purchase bitcoin using the exchange. They charge a 1% fee to convert bitcoin back to your local currency.
Registration and Banking
If you’re planning on playing blackjack at bitcoin online casinos, then you probably want to know a bit more about registering an account, as well as the deposit and withdrawal process to get bitcoins on and off the site. When signing up you will be asked to provide a username, password and email address. You won’t be asked to provide any personal information.
Once you have bitcoin funds in your online bitcoin wallet, you will be able to deposit your desired amount into the Bitcoin Blackjack casino you want to play at. Deposits are instantaneous, while withdrawals will usually take 30 minutes to a couple of hours to reach your wallet. More importantly, there are less transaction fees than the traditional payment systems.