The same way you may go to a casino in your city and spend your hard-earned money, you can go to an online casino that accepts bitcoin and spend your cryptocurrency. Actually, a few Las Vegas casinos, like the D in Las Vegas, take Bitcoin as well.
Like gambling with dollars, pounds, or any other fiat money, crypto gambling operates in the same way: you put your wager, and either you win or you lose. It’s also not a brand-new idea. One of the first Bitcoin gambling websites to open was SatoshiDice in 2012; there, hundreds of thousands of Bitcoins were lost in wagers.
There are now several Bitcoin casinos available, in addition to other crypto casinos that take well-known cryptocurrencies like ETH, XRP, DOGE, and others. Be aware, though, that not all Bitcoin casinos are created equal. Make sure you do your homework in advance to avoid using a shady site because there are many of them that won’t let you withdraw wins or do other things.
Is Crypto Gambling Illegal?
Your location will determine this. Crypto gambling is allowed in locations like the UK, Australia, and Canada since those nations have no issues with it and haven’t issued any regulations on it. Crypto gaming would also be prohibited in nations like China, Egypt, and Qatar where cryptocurrency is prohibited generally.
Particularly the US has adopted a perplexing position on cryptocurrency gaming. On a federal level, there is no explicit regulation governing cryptocurrency gaming. However, there is a lot of state legislation generally prohibiting internet gambling.
For instance, in Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, internet gambling is entirely permitted. Other states, including Oregon and Indiana, solely allow online sports betting, while others have more restrictive laws. Other states have outright banned internet gaming.
This implies that while cryptocurrency gaming is not precisely regulated or lawful, it is also not illegal. Many trustworthy cryptocurrency gaming websites offer privacy policies and terms of service that address any questions you may have about utilizing their services.
What Crypto Gambling Games Are Available?
Almost any game you can imagine. A bitcoin casino offers all games available in a conventional casino, including:
- Slots
- Poker
- Table games like roulette, blackjack and Hi-Lo
- Sports betting including live betting
- Scratch cards
- Dice games like craps
- Lottery games
Crypto Gambling Tax
Depending on where you reside, a huge victory might also mean a big tax burden.
No tax authority has yet published guidelines regarding cryptocurrency gaming earnings. However, there are detailed regulations on gaming taxation and crypto taxation generally. Depending on the transaction you’re conducting, you’ll pay a certain kind of tax. In terms of crypto gaming taxes, there are only a few transactions we need to consider:
- Putting your cryptocurrency on the line.
- Crypto winnings.
- Converting your profits into fiat money.
- Let’s split it out because each gets taxed a little bit differently.
On cryptocurrency betting and its taxation, there is no precise guidance. It may be argued that this counts as spending your cryptocurrency on goods or services, which is taxed on capital gains. However, it’s ambiguous because you can receive nothing in return. There is a case to be made that you could write it off with no actual loss or benefit.
Similar to how there is very little tax advice for winning cryptocurrency, it is also difficult to win cryptocurrency. However, there is a ton of advice on how to handle gambling profits generally, and it all depends on where you reside.
For US investors, the news is negative, but most other nations will benefit. What transpires when you exchange your cryptocurrency wins for fiat cash, while you probably won’t want to maintain your gaming earnings in cryptocurrency? You must pay Capital Gains Tax on any capital gain when you sell your cryptocurrency wins. This is the difference in value between the times you purchased and sold your item.
The cost basis makes this complex. Your purchase price for your cryptocurrency is your cost basis. You may argue that you have a zero cost foundation for wins from gambling (or a negligible cost basis).
As a result, in nations like Canada that employ the modified cost basis technique, your whole cryptocurrency holdings may be liable to capital gains tax. You might be able to adjust this so that you don’t have to pay Capital Gains Tax on all of the proceeds in nations like the US or Australia, where you have greater control over cost basis techniques. Our cost basis guide has further information.
Summary Of Crypto Gambling
The gaming industry appears to be attracting greater attention globally, in contrast to other millennial industries that have lost relevance over time. Choosing the finest crypto gambling site nowadays is more difficult than it was a few years ago due to the abundance of these sites.
The expansion of the gaming business may be ascribed to entrepreneurs who were proactive and quick to adopt innovative technology for increased effectiveness. Business owners impatiently anticipate the integration of cryptocurrencies into gambling systems.