These days, there is no shortage of online casinos available to South African players on the Web. This is likely because SA as a country is vast in size and quite often the nearest land-based casino can often mean travelling hundreds of miles. The solution for most South African casino players is to hit the online casinos. Consequently, an increasing number of online casino operators have recognised the rise in popularity of online gambling in South Africa.
Most online casinos that accept players from SA can be played using Euros, UK Pound Sterling, or US Dollars by depositing South African Rands into the casino account. On the other hand, there is an increasing number of casinos that allow South African players to deposit in and hold their balance in ZAR and play casino games using ZAR.
Skrill Casino – What Is It and How It Works?
Skrill is basically an online e-wallet. E-wallets are effectively an online bank account that allows you to receive and make payments using your email address rather than your bank account. This is a very safe way to transact over the open web and reduces the risk of your credit or debit card information being compromised.
Although the main service is an e-wallet, you can also apply for a pre-paid MasterCard debit card from Skrill, but for the purpose of online casino deposits, it is always best to use the e-wallet.
- E-wallet service
- Pre-paid debit card service
- Use your email address as a bank account number
Skrill Secure Transactions/Fiat Currency Exchange/Cryptocurrency Exchange
Skrill accepts ZAR and also converts currencies on your behalf if you want to send or receive or payments. This includes both fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies. Also, when you use Skrill for any financial transactions, Skrill uses its high-tech online encryption and fraud protection to protect the transaction being made.
- Make online payments without revealing card or bank details
- Skrill uses 128-bit SSL encryption and fraud protection to process transactions
- Make payments and receive money using ZAR or cryptocurrencies
Easy Sign-Up Process
All you need to do is simply sign up for a Skrill account using your email, create a Skrill password, and then confirm your email. You can now upload your credit or debit card information into your Skrill account. If you also want to receive payments, you should also add your bank details. Once you are done, you can now make and receive payments with any company that accepts Skrill without having to reveal any of your card or banking information.
- Sign up using your email address
- Add bank account details for withdrawals
- Add credit/debit card details for payments
Your Skrill Account Balance
You can top up your Skrill account by receiving payments or adding funds from your bank account or credit/debit cards. Alternatively, you can keep your balance at zero and when you want to make a payment, Skrill will process the payment and then retrieve funds internally from one of your registered financial options. All the while, you only ever provide an email address and never have to reveal your card or bank details.
- Accept payments to your Skrill account
- Skrill manages payments to third-party companies
Skrill – Limits, Verification, and Fees
As with any financial facility, there are certain restrictions and/or security checks that you will need to fulfill in order to gain full account access.
Verification
When you start to use your credit card or receive money using your Skrill account, you will be asked to provide some verification of your identity:
- Driving license or National ID Card or passport
- Proof of Address (Utility Bill or Bank Statement dated within the last 6 months)
Fees
As Skrill is a service, there are some fees that come with using its facility. To save you the time looking up the fees yourself, we have listed the main ones that apply to you as an online casino player below:
- 1% to top up your account
- 1.45% to send money
- 0% to send money to someone’s bank account
- 0% to receive money
- 3.99% currency conversions
- 70 ZAR to transfer funds to your bank account
Other fees apply if you plan to play at South African cryptocurrency casinos and you want to use Skrill for crypto transactions as well as to buy and sell cryptos.
Limits
Generally, Skrill does not put any limits on how much you can pay a company and as such, it is one of the most hassle-free e-wallets out there. However, transactions over 70,000 ZAR might come under scrutiny and the company may not process it until after a telephone call. Generally, any such restrictions are only applicable when you first start to use your Skrill account.
If you are a high roller and new to Skrill, then the company just needs to get to know you in order to make sure high-value transactions are not fraudulent and that you are in the habit of making large deposits to casinos.
- There are generally no limits to deposits and withdrawals
- Security processes may be applied to transactions when you first use the account
- Skrill is ideal for high rollers once Skrill know you habitually make large payments
Casino Deposits via Skrill
Making deposits to an online casino is very straightforward and free in most cases. First of all, just make sure that the casino accepts Skrill as a payment method. You should also check the casino is properly licensed before committing any money.
Casinos licensed by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) and Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) are the safest online casinos in the world and some casinos licensed by these two authorities will accept South African players. By using a casino licensed by one of these two authorities you will be able to use their dispute resolution teams in case of any transaction issues with the casino.
Once you are happy that you have chosen the best Skrill casino for you, then sign up and visit the ‘cashier’, ‘deposit’, ‘payments’, or ‘banking’ section.
All you need to do here is:
- Select ZAR as your currency if available, or choose your preferred currency option
- Enter the amount you want to deposit
- Skrill as your deposit method
- Enter your email address and wait to be redirected
- On the Skrill, page enter your password and process
- Your casino account will be instantly credited
Deposit Methods I can Use to Top Up My Skrill Account
Skrill affords you numerous ways to deposit money and top up your account.
- Bank Transfer
- Bitcoin
- Credit/Debit Card
- Neteller
Skrill Casino Withdrawals
Skrill withdrawals are just as straightforward as deposits however, there are not as many ways to withdraw as there are to deposit. Withdrawals usually take around 1 to 3 days until the money is credited to your account.
- Bank account
- Debit/credit card
Pros and Cons of using Skrill at an online casino
Here are some of the pros and cons of using Skrill in a nutshell.
Pros
- Very easy to sign up and use
- Secure and safe way to transact using only your email address
- No need to reveal bank details or debit/credit card info
- It can be used as a deposit and withdrawal method
- You can use ZAR and/or cryptocurrencies
- Fraud protection and encrypted transaction processing
- 24/7 customer support
Cons
- Some casinos exclude Skrill deposits from bonuses
- Withdrawal fees apply when transferring cash to a bank account
- 3.99% currency exchange fees
Skrill Casinos – FAQ
Will Skrill pay interest on any positive balance?
No Skrill doesn’t pay interest on positive balances. Although this facility does act as an online bank account and you get all the security benefits that you would get using online banking, some benefits such as loans, overdrafts, and interest payments are not a part of Skrill’s services.
Why use Skrill instead of my debit or credit card of casinos are already safe?
It is entirely down to personal choice. Casinos do have privacy policies and your credit/debit card information should be safe. However, some people prefer not to reveal this information, and so this is why e-wallets such as Skrill as popular.
I have found a casino that is licensed in Curacao and accepts ZAR as well as Skrill – is it safe?
One of the issues with the Curacao licensing is that no one really knows what the licensing body does to protect players. As a South African player, you are better off playing at casinos that hold an eCOGRA seal of approval or licensed by the MGA. Both entities will give you protection as a player, and you will be able to use them as third-part mediators in case of any casino disputes.
Why do some casinos accepting South African players only allow me to play using Euros or Dollars?
These casinos are not specifically targeting South African players and often do not have a huge demand from SA. Consequently, the casino has not implemented the gaming technology to accept ZAR bets i.e. when you play a slot, the slot’s code has not been configured for ZAR.
Why is my casino not allowing me to use its casino bonuses after depositing using Skrill?
There are a few casinos out there, but not many, that will exclude Skrill deposits from their promotions for unknown reasons. In order to avoid this, always check the online casino bonus terms and conditions before you sign up.