It is astounding that according to iGamingBusiness only about 10% of global lottery tickets sales (an industry worth approximately US$300 billion per annum) are made online.
It begs the question: Why is the proportion of online sales so small?
The major impediment to online adoption is the highly restrictive payment processing regime imposed on gambling companies. The ecosystem is expensive and fraught with stifling regulation, involving an array of intermediaries: gateway suppliers, payment providers (Mastercard, Visa, PayPal, Neteller, etc.) and voucher sellers.
The problems are compounded by the reliance on banks, which place restrictions and at times completely block gambling transactions, claiming them to be ‘high risk’. Their perception is based on several factors: the potential for numerous chargebacks and refunds; the fear of falling foul of country specific rules relating to gambling; the fact that much of the industry is operated offshore giving scope for money laundering, and that the high turnover of transactions could conceal or facilitate all of the above.
Even innovative companies such as Stripe and Revolut steer clear of gambling.
But let’s get real, we are talking about lottery here; the softest and most popular form of gambling. How likely is it that buying a couple of lottery tickets will involve payment disputes and money laundering? It is laughable and just another cop out by banks scared of their own shadows.
In this context, it is little wonder that so few tickets are sold online. The concept of a truly global online lottery seems impossible to envisage, given the restrictive payment and regulatory processes, which are further compounded when dealing with multiple currencies.
But as the old saying goes; “Nothing is impossible!” Cryptocurrency and blockchain are set to be the key to unlocking a huge marketplace, changing the lottery landscape forever.
Operating a crypto-based lottery provides a truly radical solution. In an instant, it removes the biggest obstacles, allowing for a genuine borderless game that can be played using a single currency by anyone in any jurisdiction where gambling is not prohibited. Ticket purchases and prize pay outs can be made seamlessly in cryptocurrency directly between players' wallets and operators. Without burdensome processes and delays, payment processing middlemen and banks are eliminated from the equation.
Cryptocurrencies and lottery are ideally suited. …the Perfect Match!
CryptoMillionsLotto is ready to set the momentum for change, by bringing a familiar lottery format to the crypto community, as well to the mass market of non-crypto players, liberating them from the constraints of traditional state-run fiat lotteries, and offering life-changing jackpots to boot.
Find out more about CryptoMillionsLotto and our ICO/STO at www.cryptomillionslotto.io
-Sulim Malook
CEO