Cashless Gambling Set To Hit Australia Soon

Robert Longthorpe - 20 January 2023 in News

Paying with cash at land based casinos can soon become a thing of the past in Australia. With strict regulations being introduced to prevent money laundering or irresponsible gambling, it is not surprising that new laws are being drafted to make the activity safer for citizens. Players can look forward to using a digital wallet on their next land based casino visit.

A new policy being introduced in Australia will see the rollout of cashless pokie machines across land based casinos. Since online gambling is banned in Australia, the only option for Aussie players is to head over to a land based casino or pokie clubs to play. Aussies love to play pokies and this is one area set to see major change through the form of cashless gambling. So let’s look into this new change being introduced in the market in Australia.

Change to Cashless Pokie Machines

The change to cashless pokie machines is a step towards responsible gambling at land based casinos. Transactions via cash cannot be tracked and players do not have any options to limit their expenditures. By adopting these new pokie machines, patrons will not be allowed to load up their gaming wallets from the gaming floor to dissuade irresponsible gambling activities. Players will get the same features to restrict their gaming activity as they would online.

What are the Benefits?

One of the main concerns of gambling is the addiction that people face and the lack of infrastructure to tackle this concern at land based casinos. When it comes to online casinos, people can set up limits to restrict their gaming activity, but that is not possible when you are using cash in a physical machine. But with this new change, players will get the option to set up limits that cannot be changed for at least 24 hours.

A digital wallet will need to be used to work the pokie machines and transactions will take place via Bluetooth. Players will need to fund their digital wallet first to be able to use them on the pokie machines and your identity will be confirmed on-site before you can start this process. The wallet will be linked to your card or bank account and it will help authorities trace the funds later if needed.

This will prevent money laundering which is also a big issue in the industry. The venues will be able to keep a record of the players to track cases of fraud or identity theft as well. On this digital wallet, you will be able to impose a session length which limits the duration of your gaming activity. This will also help you keep track of the duration you are spending at the casino.

You can also limit the maximum number of visits to a particular venue as well as set a limit on the maximum amount you are willing to spend in a given period. The maximum number of bets in a given period can also be controlled. Players can choose to use some or all of these limits to stay in control of their gaming activity while playing at land based casinos just as they would at online casinos.

What will this mean for Gambling in the Future?

With all of these changes, Australia will be able to introduce safe and responsible gambling at land based casinos and pokie clubs. The initiative is designed to enhance the gaming experience and along with it introduce a new level of convenience and security.

But all of these changes will be pointless if bars and pubs do not adopt them. Pyrmont, one of the leading gambling authorities in New South Wales has made this initiative mandatory in its jurisdiction, however, it only accounts for 2% of all the pokie machines across the states. It is also not confirmed when the changes will be implemented.

The Star Entertainment Group who holds another 2% of all the pokie machines also supports the initiative but is sceptical of how the government will towards cashless pay across the industry if all of the pubs and clubs do not adopt the transition. It is safe to say that even though this is welcomed in the industry by major gambling organisations due to its benefits, it will still take a while for it to be implemented throughout Australia.

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