Books Being Deliberately Opaque about Crypto Exchange Rates

[sportsbettor5]

This seems like an area where there is big variation between books. Some books will tell you their exact source (e.g., coinmarketcap.com or bitstamp.com) for their exchange rates.

Then there is no way for them to screw you on deposits/withdrawals.

Without calling out any names: there are popular books out there which will not tell you their source for exchange rates. You can try asking in support, but they simply will not tell you. It's effectively a way for them to make money off of clients separate from their bookmaking/casino operations.

Hope more players will get on the case of books with specific demands for exchange rates. That's the way to fix this.

 

[rolandcorts]

There's only two exchange rates. The right one and the wrong one. BOL is the king in this regard. Pinnacle, among the big names, is shameful in this regard.

 

[sportsbettor5]

There's only two exchange rates. The right one and the wrong one. BOL is the king in this regard. Pinnacle, among the big names, is shameful in this regard.

There will be slight variations between exchanges. Right now bitstamp is quoting $21,389/XBT while coinmarketcap is quoting $21,398/XBT. A sportsbook should commit to a particular source in its terms and conditions to ensure fairness and objectivity.

BOL does seem fair in this regard as it quotes a rate and guarantees that rate for a certain amount of time. Under that system, sometimes the book will win and sometimes the player will win but neither will take advantage of the other in the long run.

Don't get me started on Pinnacle! They are a disaster.

 

[rolandcorts]

Your example just described a 0.04% difference. That's nothing. BTC fluctuates that much every second even on the same exchange. I'm talking 2-5% differences. Sometimes the payouts they use imply prices that never existed on any exchange during the payout timeframe.

For example if you requested a payout of $22,000 in the last 12 hours and got 1 BTC. That's BS because it implies they used a price of 1 BTC = 22,000 when no such price existed in the last 12 hours. Yes, I am looking at you Pinnacle. And often Bookmaker.

 

[Danny7]

Important topic for sure!

A sportsbook should commit to a particular source in its terms and conditions to ensure fairness and objectivity.

yes good point. that really should become the industry standard. It is something that should be considered in sportsbook ratings too.

 

[Danny7]

I'm talking 2-5% differences. Sometimes the payouts they use imply prices that never existed on any exchange during the payout timeframe.

wow, 2-5% ?!?! Are there really books that do that? that's shocking to her to be honest! Oh man if you effectively have to pay a fee close to 5% when depositing and the same when withdrawing then you are really gambling with a huge handicap.
I don't really have bitcoin/crypto experience with sportsbooks (yet), but I wanted to start using crypto in the near future with some books where I have no other good option....
Transparency would be my top priority with this.

 

[Enikk]

Your example just described a 0.04% difference. That's nothing. BTC fluctuates that much every second even on the same exchange. I'm talking 2-5% differences. Sometimes the payouts they use imply prices that never existed on any exchange during the payout timeframe.

For example if you requested a payout of $22,000 in the last 12 hours and got 1 BTC. That's BS because it implies they used a price of 1 BTC = 22,000 when no such price existed in the last 12 hours. Yes, I am looking at you Pinnacle. And often Bookmaker.

I have never experienced this at BM and have got a lot of withdraws there. I have started withdrawing at the end of the day though near their cut-off time where there withdraw times are much faster though

 

[Ace7550]

The way it should be done is to have a locked in 15-minute price and an exact amount of crypto to be sent. If the correct amount of crypto is sent in that 15-minute window you get the exact amount of your deposit.
I've never seen a 5% haircut but there are books that routinely shortchange customers. betus does it. So does gtbets. bol/sbag oftentimes give you a few bucks extra. I've found jb/bm, betnow, bovada and BAS to be pretty accurate.

 

[rolandcorts]

I've been shorted several 2-3% from BM a couple times. One time I complained and they corrected it.

It's not rocket science. Either lock in the price at the time the withdrawal is requested, or do what BOL does and just use the market price at the time the withdrawal is actually paid out.

 

[rolandcorts]

To be fair, bookmaker hasn't screwed me in a long long time. I feel like it happened in the past because they took 4 hours or so and there were some big fluctuations. Now they pay in like 30 mins.

 

[sportsbettor5]

I've been shorted several 2-3% from BM a couple times. One time I complained and they corrected it.

It's not rocket science. Either lock in the price at the time the withdrawal is requested, or do what BOL does and just use the market price at the time the withdrawal is actually paid out.

Yeah I think the most reasonable move is the latter.

1) Specify a price source and

2) use the price at exact time of one confirmation on the block chain.

 

[rolandcorts]

On the issue of Bookmaker, they may be honest with btc prices when they pay out but they get away with murder stealing from players on their betslip. How many years of complaints do they have to receive to prevent their bet slip from changing odds while you're making your bet? If the odds change, immediately cancel the ticket and force the bettor to make a new one.

They steal probably 5-10k from me per year on this.

 

[Enikk]

On the issue of Bookmaker, they may be honest with btc prices when they pay out but they get away with murder stealing from players on their betslip. How many years of complaints do they have to receive to prevent their bet slip from changing odds while you're making your bet? If the odds change, immediately cancel the ticket and force the bettor to make a new one.

They steal probably 5-10k from me per year on this.

I had a new weird one happen to me this weekend. It was my mistake as I usually only have it on line only if my favor but instead it was on accept all line changes. I bought down on a tennis points line to get plus money. Line was +9 -135 I think and I used the drop down for the +8.5 +112 I think. Anyway it took the bet at +8 -102?? WTF is that... If line changed than give me the juiced out 8.5. I took a print screen but when I looked at setting i didn't have the "only in my favor check"... The +8 totally killed my bet because it meant the player had to take Joker to a tie-break or win a set which I never would bet that where the 8.5 made a difference with just a straight sets loss. He ended up winning a set but doing stupid shit to lose the bet anyway so it was a loss.

 

[BMR Disputes Matt]

Bookmaker and Betonline rarely have any complaints about cryptocurrency rates used. And when a player complains they will take a look at blockchain explorer estimates and talk about it.

Pinnacle needs to be taken behind the woodshed and given a whipping they have become so bad it's difficult to defend it.

 

[rolandcorts]

I had a new weird one happen to me this weekend. It was my mistake as I usually only have it on line only if my favor but instead it was on accept all line changes. I bought down on a tennis points line to get plus money. Line was +9 -135 I think and I used the drop down for the +8.5 +112 I think. Anyway it took the bet at +8 -102?? WTF is that... If line changed than give me the juiced out 8.5. I took a print screen but when I looked at setting i didn't have the "only in my favor check"... The +8 totally killed my bet because it meant the player had to take Joker to a tie-break or win a set which I never would bet that where the 8.5 made a difference with just a straight sets loss. He ended up winning a set but doing stupid shit to lose the bet anyway so it was a loss.

Yes, they can change not only the 'moneyline' on a number but also the number/spread itself. Just last week I was betting a runline on a game right before it started and I ended up with let's say NYY +1 -150 instead of +1.5 -150. That was like losing 30-50c right there.

It's a simple fix: if betslip odds change with betslip open, betslip should be canceled. Or a pop-up that tells you odds changed and you are forced to see the new line (like pinnacle).

No one cares though.