21 Oct2020

Mobile Betting in Africa: An Overview of Popular Payment Methods in Kenya, Nigeria Tanzania & South Africa

Written by Winedmuner. Posted in Mobile betting in Africa

Payment methods are critical in gambling. Withdrawals and deposits are two ends that mark the commencement and completion of the whole activity. The most convenient methods across Africa involve the use of mobile money. There are two main challenges facing gambling companies in Africa. First, the legislations are uncertain. Secondly, there are doubts about whether the clients will find ease and convenience for a particular payment option. One example is an action by the Kenyan authorities to suspend M-Pesa services for betting companies: Betin, the former leader, left the market, leaving it to better-prepared betting sites like 22Bet Kenya. Operators who had the plans to invest in the nation got concerns that the government may switch off their services without notice even after capitalizing in relevant compliance. In Nigeria, payments appear convenient. The country has a good infrastructure. Looking at South Africa, online payments are transparent for sites that have a license. Below is an overview of popular payment methods available for punters in Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania and South Africa.

Mobilw betting in Africa

Mobile payments in Kenya

The payment options available to betting fanatics in Kenya depend on the site. Kenyan-operated sites usually emphasize on the use of mobile money cash transfer system known as M-Pesa. The service functions under Safaricom, which is a giant telecommunication company in the country. To use the methods, players have to open an account, cash into the account and send the funds to the sportsbook. The withdrawal process is convenient and straightforward. Bettors can request to let their funds remain in that account. It is similar to a regular bank account. There are many agents across centres in the countries where you can easily withdraw the money. For offshore sportsbooks, players have the option to use internationally reputed payment methods. The options include MasterCard and Visa. Besides, they can also use e-wallets such as Skrill and Neteller. The e-wallets operate in a similar way to the M-Pesa. The only difference is that they are global and not localized. Therefore, few people may be conversant with them. Besides, the points of the transaction are less compared to M-Pesa agents that you find almost in all centres, including the most remote. Besides, sportsbooks accept bank transfers from players in the country. that is a relieve especially to the bettors who wish to cash in large amounts of money beyond the limit of credit cards. Players on a shoestring budget can use prepaid debit and credit cards.

Is mobile betting available to punters in Kenya?

Mobile betting is available to players in Kenya. Furthermore, a large percentage of those who gamble does it with their phones. The gambling market has seen substantial expansion. The positive growth is attributable to the ease of access to the betting platforms.

South Africa

Licensed sportsbooks in the country usually accept MasterCard and Visa as the major payment methods. Besides, punters can make deposits and withdrawals from major banks in the country; for example, there is the First National and Standard bank. Players in the country can also deposit using E-wallets such s Neteller and Skrill. Majority of the sportsbooks in the country accepts the payments methods. Moreover, there are betting sites that allow players to use PaySafeCard, iPay and EntroPay.

Is mobile betting available to bettors in South Africans?

Gamblers in South Africa are free to use their phones regardless of whether the sportsbook has a license or not. Note that some bookies won’t display all that they offer on their mobile platforms. For example, all the sportsbooks allow you to place a stake using your mobile devices. However, it might be impossible to make withdrawals, request for a bonus, or utilize some of the customer support features such as live chat. You have to launch the wite with a computer to access those options. Some players are so much into the use of your phone device in betting. If you are the type, it is advisable to get all details right concerning the options that won’t be accessible through the mobile platform.

Nigeria

Nigerian players face an uphill task when cashing in at Nigerian-operated online bookmakers. Most of the sites in the country could not offer e-wallets services such as Skrill and Neteller. However, the situation appears to change with time. Although it varies with the site, players in the country can even use UKash or Click2Pay. Ukash is the present-day PaySafeCard.

Is mobile betting available to players in Nigeria?

The sports betting industry in Nigeria has been on tremendous growth. Use of mobile devices in gambling is a significant force behind the positive trajectory. The sportsbooks are aware of the fact and are not leaving anything to chance. The convenience with which any player can place a stake using their phones has seen a massive population averaging at 30 per cent stake frequently. Like in most countries, the section of the website that you can access with your Mobile device varies depending on the site. Very few will allow you to make withdrawals. However, all sportsbooks allow betting and depositing in the mobile platform.

Tanzania

Most sportsbooks in Tanzania accepts the two popular payment options, which are MasterCard and Visa. Besides, American Express is available in some sites. Both Tanzanian-run and offshore sportsbooks allow players to use prepaid debit and credit cards. The foreign sites also accept the use of two popular e-wallets which are Neteller and Skrill. On the other hand, local sportsbooks incorporate methods such as Airtel Money and M-Pesa. An exceptional method in the country is the use of vouchers. It is common among the local operators who have runs brick-and-mortar.  The method requires that you visit their physical location where you purchase the voucher. After that, you will use it to make online cash-in at the operator’s site.

Is mobile betting available to players in Tanzania?

Both foreign and locally operated sites in Tanzania allow the use of mobile devices to place a bet. Fredrick Boshe states that the devices have over 75 per cent market penetration in the country. Very few countries in Africa have such a high statistic.

Finally

Experienced operators cite Africa as a diverse continent. Jurisdictions vary in different regions in Africa, with each country having its flaws and strengths. Some are favourable to the betting companies while others are not. Most of the sites looking for a payment method face some drawbacks.