Starting a crypto casino sounds like an exciting adventure, doesn’t it? They have all you could’ve ever wanted in a business – strong security, both for yours and for your customers’ data, anonymity if someone wishes it, and quick transactions. No wonder they are popular, right?
But, as great as it sounds, starting a crypto casino is no easy task. You will need to do some careful planning, a hefty investment, and be familiar in depth with the casino and crypto world.
Are you ready?
Know your market
First things first, you’ve got to know your way around the market. If you thought that having a job or your company means you no longer have to study – well, think again. To know the market, you need to do your homework on current trends, what players want, and who you are up against. There is nothing better than taking a look at your future competitors. Often you’ll be able to see on their sites features you didn’t know you liked, as well as those you won’t have at your own casino. And by reading players’ reviews you should be able to understand what they like.
Figuring out your target audience and getting to know their needs and expectations will shape everything – from the games you offer to how your site looks and how you market it.
For instance, gambling expert Alan Draper says that people love playing at new Bitcoin casinos because they give players higher bonuses, and more benefits, and often have a greater number of new games available. So, keep this in mind when starting your own crypto casino.
Now, let’s see what steps you need to go through before you become a proud owner of the crypto casino.
Legal stuff
One of the scariest parts is going through legal stuff, especially if you’re aiming to have an offshore casino. But, why not? It might be a bit complicated, but it will pay off in the end. In the US there are more states with unregulated status for online gambling, and it may take years before all states get the legal gambling laws. Right now, players are in the habit of finding offshore solutions.
What do you need to look after when dealing with legalities?
First, there is licensing. You can get your license from many places, and each has its own rules and standards. The most known are Malta Gaming Authority, Curacao eGaming Licensing Authority, and UK Gambling Commission.
Then there is compliance. The laws are changing on a regular basis so you’ll need to follow both gambling regulations and financial laws related to cryptocurrency. This means acting according to Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) protocol.
And the last, taxes, the only thing as certain as death. There are tax regulations in the region or country you’ll be operating, and also crypto earnings can be taxed differently than traditional money.
Tech talk
There is no casino without technology. Not unless you’re aiming to have a traditional pre-tech era casino. Charming as it may sound, technology brought a lot of useful features.
Casino platform should be able to support a lot of games, a lot of players, to allow for customization, and to have great security. Don’t skimp on security. You can use SSL encryption, two-factor authentication, secure wallets, on top of regular security.
Since you want to start a crypto casino, you’ll also need to integrate blockchain technology to handle crypto transactions.
Game on
Games are the prime exhibits on your platform. You want to have as many as possible – traditional ones like slots, blackjack, poker, roulette, but you don’t want to skip on the new and innovative one, especially since many of them use blockchain.
Make sure to showcase provably fair algorithms so players can see the fairness of game outcomes. Also, find reputable game providers (or, even more exciting, you can develop your own games and gain a reputation for uniqueness). Don’t forget that many people love playing more on their mobile phones than on computers, so make sure that games work well on both desktop and mobile devices.
Payment processing
How does the payment process work when it comes to cryptocurrency? It goes without saying that it’s fast and secure. You can set up secure wallets for deposits and withdrawals. Multi-signature wallets can add extra security.
There are many cryptocurrencies out there, Bitcoin and Ethereum the most popular. But you never know what kind of cryptocurrency your players deal with, so make sure to use reliable crypto payment gateways that support multiple cryptocurrencies. They usually have low transaction fees.
Unless you want to be crypto exclusive, you can also accept traditional currencies and payment methods. You don’t want to exclude players who like to pay by credit cards, bank transfers, or e-wallets.
Marketing and promotion
Once you establish your platform and everything is ready for players to come in, you need to let them know you are there and what are you offering. That’s the moment when SEO and content marketing enter the house. You can optimize your site for search engines, but that’s just half of the work. Publish some engaging content too, like blog posts, guides, tutorials, and videos about crypto and gambling.
Being present on social media is a must. You can also partner with some gambling or crypto influencers to reach more people.
Don’t forget – you’re new on the field and, let’s be honest, players can sometimes be less prone to fully trust you. So be generous with bonuses and promotions, at least at the beginning, and make them engaging and rewarding.