Around 30 years ago the bank wire, or bank transfer as we commonly refer to it in the UK, was actually one of the fastest ways of moving money. Modern debit and credit cards and digital wallets allow us to move money much quicker these days but for many reasons people still need to transfer money directly from their bank accounts.
Most UK bookies accept bank transfers and if you are prepared to wait for transactions to clear this can be one of the cheapest and most secure ways to fund a betting account. Bank transfers also tend to be the method of choice for large deposits and withdraws, usually carrying the highest limits of all payment methods.
Several forms of bank wire are available including the faster payments service (FPS). In this guide we show you bookies that accept bank wires, faster payments, any fees, processing times and more.
Unibet - Best Bank Transfer Betting Site
Pretty much every single betting site will allow you to transfer funds by bank transfer or wire, even the ones that don’t advertise it will allow bank transfers usually on request. While this method is safe and preferable for many however the terms, limits and times can vary hugely.
Unibet is therefore the best online bookmaker and casino available for those that want to use this payment method. They have a no minimum deposit limit, meaning you can transfer as little as you want, they also have a low withdrawal limit at just £10.
The processing speed of the operator means they also process withdrawals and deposits quicker than others, usually in a few hours, which is useful considering a bank transfer will take a few working days to go through both ways
Online Bookmakers That Accept Bank Transfers
| Site | Min Deposit | Deposit Time | Min Withdraw | Withdrawal Time | Visit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Betfred | £85 | 1-5 Days | £25 | 1-5 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Bet365 | £100.00 | 2-10 Banking Days | £5.00 | Within 24 Hours |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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All British Sports | £30 | 1-4 Days | £5000 | 2-6 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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BetVictor | £5 | 2-5 Days | £10 | 2-5 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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10bet | £10 | 3-5 Days | £1 | 1-3 Business Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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SpreadEx Sports | £10 | 1-4 Days | £10 | 2-6 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Mr.Play | £10 | Instant | £10 | 2-6 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Smarkets | £10 | Instant | £10 | 12 Hours |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Party Casino | £5 | 2-4 Business Days | £10 | 2-4 Business Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Grosvenor Sports | £5 | 1 Day | £10 | 1-3 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Luckster | £10 | 1-5 Days | £10 | 1-5 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Bettarget | £10 | Instant | £10 | 2-6 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Jeffbet | £20 | Instant | £5 | 3-7 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Ladbrokes | £10 | 1-5 Days | £5 | 2-6 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Coral | £5 | 2-5 Days | £5 | 2-5 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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NetBet | £10 | Instant | £10 | Up to 5 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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BETDAQ | £200 | 1-5 Days | £10 | 1-5 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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LeoVegas Sports | £10 | 1-5 Days | £10 | 2-5 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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Boylesports | £5 | 3-5 Days | £5 | 3-5 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
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32Red Sports | £10 | Not Available | £100 | 3-5 Days |
T&Cs Apply, 18+
|
Bank Wire Gambling
If your bank account is from a country where online gambling is legal, the site is based in a country where betting online is legal and you are depositing from a country in which the process is legal then there no restrictions on using bank transfers to gamble.
A bank wire requires you to authorise the transfer directly with the bank using your own security pins, card readers, etc., and so this removes a lot of the usual issues of card fraud. Many banks block betting transactions on cards as they class it as ‘unusual activity’ but when making a bank transfer it shouldn’t be blocked as you are doing the authorising. Once you have made one transfer too the system should remember the merchant and you may even be able to deposit next time without needing additional pins or card readers.
Many sites will actually ask you to use a bank transfer if you want to make a large deposit or if you’ve won big and need to make a big withdrawal. Betting companies do this because bank transfer is the most secure way to send and receive large amount of cash and they also carry the lowest fees for the operator.
How To Bet Using A Bank Transfer
To deposit you will need to set up a payee with your bank. Your bookmaker will give you their account details and tell you how to reference the transaction. This is usually just your username or betting site account ID. Simply put the bookmakers name, account number and sort code into the relevant fields, give the transaction a reference so the bookie knows it is you and then authorise the payment. Authorisation will usually require you to generate a unique pin using a card reader, secure SMS code or other at least for the first time you deposit. The money will now be routed to your bookies bank account and this can take anywhere from a few hours to 5 days to clear and may be longer if over a weekend or other holiday.
If you are not using a UK bank account or your bookmakers bank account is not based in the UK you may need to perform a bank wire. This is a longer form of a bank transfer requiring additional fields and these are discussed in types of bank transfer below. The principle is exactly the same and a bank wire shouldn’t take too much longer than a bank transfer. Some bookies also accept faster bank transfer that will clear even quicker, again this is discussed below.
To withdraw by bank transfer or wire you do this all with your bookie. Simply enter your own account information including account numbers, name, sort code and if a wire IBAN numbers, etc. This means you do not have to interface with your bank to withdraw but it is unusual for a bookie to let you withdraw by bank transfer unless you made the deposit using the same method.
Unfortunately a drawback of using a bank wire / transfer is bookmakers often have higher deposit / withdrawal limits than other method such as funding by debit bank. This is often due to the added clerical requirement for the bookmaker to mediate a bank transfer. A bank wire still requires some human intervention to verify the funds have landed in the bookies account or to send it from their account. They will therefore not do this for minor amounts of money. Some bookies have much lower limits than others, see the table at the top of this article.
When considering processing times for bank transfers there are two components. The first is the actual time it takes for the money to clear in an account and the second factor is how long the bookie takes to process that and dump the funds in your account. Bookies vary in their processing speed and this is one reason why processing times can vary hugely between betting sites. All processing times are stated in the bookmakers table.
Types of Bank Wire / Transfer
Bankers’ Automated Clearing Services (BACS)
When making payments from one UK account to another this payment will be processed by with the Bankers’ Automated Clearing Services. Direct debits and deposits are also made using this system.
BACS dates back to the late 1960’s and was developed as a way for banks to cooperate to make payments clear quicker and avoid the use of paper documents that used to have to be sent in the post between banks. In 2017 £4.9 trillion was sent using this system in 6.34 billion individual payments. To use it all you require is a payee name, account number and sort code. Payments are usually stated as taking 2-5 working days but in practice you find many of these payments now clear much quicker.
Clearing House Automated Payment System (CHAPS)
CHAPS is another form of bank transfer within the UK but not something you are likely to encounter with bookmakers. The service provides same day secure money transfers and is generally used for large sums of money such as a house deposit.
The service has a hefty bank fee northwards of £30. If you want to deposit or withdraw a large sum of money with your bookie by CHAPS there is no reason why they wouldn’t accept it but you will need to contact them first to arrange this.
Bank Wire
The bank wire is a form of bank transfer when either the beneficiary, the recipient or both have an account outside the UK. Many bookies with a UK gambling licence are not based in the UK and may not have a UK account and so you may need to transfer using a wire. A wire requires a few extra details. Firstly you will need an International Bank Account Number (IBAN) and a Bank Identifier Code (BIC) or Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) number, both are usually found on your statement or can be acquired by phoning your bank. You will usually need the address of your bank too as well as your sort code.
The person wishing to send money approaches the bank with the IBAN and BIC of the payee. The sending bank then sends a message by a secure system (such as SWIFT) to the receiving bank requesting that it effect the payment. The money is temporarily transferred to an intermediate account between the banks whilst the payment is verified and fees collected, this is what takes the time. Both the sending bank, receiving bank and intermediate bank can all charge fees for this service.
There is no reason why a bank wire should take much longer than a BACS payment, this is all electronic and global. Time periods are sometimes longer due to time differences between countries or due to national holidays. Many banks do charge personal account holders a free for a bank wire but most bookies do not charge to receive or send a bank wire but again minimum limits tend to be higher than other payment forms.
Faster Payments Service (FPS) Bank Transfer
The Faster Payments Service (FPS) was set up back in 2008 by BACS and provides an almost real-time payment system. The system of payment is exactly the same as a normal BACS transfer but if both the bank and the merchant (in this case the bookie) both support FPS then the payment should clear in under two hours. Bookies that accept the Faster Payments Service are shown in the table. Any additional processing time beyond 2 hours is down to how quick the betting site admin is in loading funds into your account.
FPS was set up in response to customers who were annoyed with their banks taking so long to clear transfers. There was a feeling that the bank was using the money for their own purposes during those 3-5 days before the money cleared. Most banks and many merchants now accept FPS, expect more bookies to sign up to the service in time.
History of Bank Wires and Transfers
The word bank wire comes from the process of sending payments by telegraph ‘wire’ in the 1800’s. Up until the late 1960’s bank transfers all occurred on paper and could take weeks or even months, signed authorisation forms were submitted by post. This could take a long time before the days of air travel.
In the UK in 1968 Dennis Gladwell, chairman of the banks clearing committee, wanted to improve the speed of the existing paper clearing system. Using an electronic system with magnetic tapes money could be send and authorised quicker. In 1983 a telephone system was introduced and by 1985 most banks had signed up to the system.
In 2003 BACS moved from a telephone to an internet based service and now BACS payments can only be made online using the BACS Approved Solution Suppliers (BASS).
Countries Where Bank Wires Can Be Used For Gambling
A bank wire can take place between any two bank accounts in the world. The only restriction is whether gambling is legal in the country where the bank account is based.
If your bank account is based in a country where online gambling is illegal then you will not be allowed to fund a bookmaker account.
If for some reason your bank will not allow you to make transactions to a betting company then my advice would be to find a new bank, it is your money and you should be able to do what you like with it.
If you are in the UK with a UK betting account and want to fund your betting account from a bank account like this consider using an e-wallet such as PayPal, Neteller or Skrill as an intermediary or by purchasing cash vouchers such as PaySafeCard.
Security
This is possibly the most secure way to move funds as it requires you to directly authorise your bank to make the transaction. Unless someone has all of your bank details including login passwords, bank card, account numbers, etc., then they will not be able to steal your cash this way.
These details can be stolen by hackers using phishing attacks where they will try to get you to log in to a ‘clone’ website of your bank. Most fraud is committed by stealing bank card details, phishing is a much rarer and harder way for fraudsters to steal your cash.
When bank transferring to a bookie the bookmakers themselves do not actually need to have any of your bank details so even if the bookie gets hacked and payment details stolen they will not get access to your bank account details.
If for some reason your cash were to go missing on route this is your banks issue not yours and they are obliged to refund your money. Be advised not all countries have the same level of financial regulation as the UK and so bookies do not always accept bank transfers from all countries.
Bank Wire Fees
There should be no fees levied by your bank for a BACS bank transfer or FPS payment when moving from a UK account to a UK account. Your bank may however issue fees for international bank wires so check what type of transfer your bookie wants, this will depend on where their accounts are based. On the whole this a largely free service by banks.
The vast majority of bookies do not charge fees for the service and in fact this often represents the only free deposit method from bookies that do charge fees. No bookmakers on OnlineBetting.org.uk charge for this service.
Be careful if transferring money in different currencies as your bank will likely levy a fee or commission for converting to and from your own currency.