The traditional online gambling market is absolutely gargantuan. In 2020 the “iGaming market” as it is known, brought in a staggering $66.9B. The industry is predicted to bring in $93B in 2023. This makes the industry growth rate somewhere around 11.5% annually. It is big, big money, and Crypto Casinos account for 25% of that revenue.
It is interesting then to consider what the online gambling world is all about. Regulations have been pushed harder and harder over the years, in a effort to control the space, and protect problem gamblers. Supposedly the majority of money brought in by such sites, is brought in by “whales”, customers that drop a hell of a lot of money on their accounts. There has been a whole host of efforts, at least in certain markets, to make it more difficult for problem gamblers to blow their entire wad whilst sitting on the couch watching football matches.
Such regulations include the requirement of a licence, and the requirement to operative in a certain manner in order to retain that licence. Depending on the jurisdiction, certain rules have been put in place to place a 24 hour limit on cards, prevent people depositing via multiple payment services, and asking customers “are you sure?” before they deposit more money. Advertising restrictions have also been imposed.
Of course any such regulation only slows profits, and so while online gambling has been incredibly successful to date, and no doubt will continue to be long into the future, the market for crypto gambling is real and has a reason to exist. As we all know, the absence of regulation in the crypto space means that for the moment at least, anything goes. Web3 gambling companies are free to market their product as they wish, with less restrictions as to how the platform operates, or how they advertise themselves.
Lower fees and instant withdrawals mean that Crypto Casino platforms are becoming more and more popular. The speed, anonymity, and user friendliness that BTC and other cryptocurrencies afford, has been found by many gamblers to be superior to traditional online gambling in the Web2 space.
The immutability and transparency of the blockchain ledger is another mark in favour of Crypto Casinos. While there is no guarantee that a third party bookmaker will make good on its promises, the blockchain will not lie, with winning stakes being cashed out with certainty. Once again the trustless nature of the blockchain provides an opportunity for a more honest and fair system.
As there are a great many crypto holders that are extremely flush with BTC, ETH and all the rest, it makes sense that business would be good for crypto gambling. Tapping into the crypto whale market is a pretty decent business model, and ensures that some bets are being placed on these platforms with size.
For those that live in places where gambling is outlawed this may well be an extremely positive development. For years the only place to gamble in the US was Las Vegas, and gambling outside of that jurisdiction was considered illegal. These days such laws are being relaxed, and online gambling is permitted outside of Nevada, but even so there are still places out there where gambling is not legal. For people living in these places, it is definitely a net positive to have the opportunity to gamble if they so choose.
It is safe to assume that crypto market share of the gambling industry is only set to grow. With more and more users being onboarded to crypto, the market base should be up only, regardless of minor set backs such as little bear markets. Companies such as Stake, look all but certain to maintain positive growth trajectories in the medium to long term.
So maybe, with all of that being said, investments in Crypto Casinos could be a wise choice. (Building a Crypto Casino might be an even better one!)
After all, the house always wins…
