Paypal ceases payment protection for online gambling in US, Canada, Brazil

Paypal ceases payment protection for online gambling in US, Canada, Brazil

Online payment processing service Paypal announced that it will soon stop protecting payments for transactions related to gambling in several countries.

Paypal ceases payment protection for online gambling in US, Canada, BrazilThe online payment platform recently issued a statement, where it outlined the changes it will make to its Payment Protection policy and User Agreement, impacting buyer and seller protection as well as dispute resolution.

According to the company, “gambling, gaming and/or any other activity with an entry fee and a prize” will be included in Paypal’s updated list of “ineligible items” for protection starting June 25 in a number of countries, including the United States, Canada and Brazil.

Aside from gambling, other items that will no longer be eligible for payment protection include payments on crowdfunding platforms and payments made to any government agency.

“This is consistent with the risks and uncertainties involved in contributing to crowdfunding campaigns, which do not guarantee a return for the investment made in these types of campaigns,” Paypal said, according to a BBC report.

The online payment giant made its way back into the choppy waters of U.S. online gambling in 2015, when it quietly agreed to a deal with WSOP.com to offer its deposit and withdrawal services via its Nevada- and New Jersey-based online entities.

In a statement to CNBC, Paypal said the partnership was part of a pilot program to support four real money gaming operators that want to offer their players a way “to fund their online accounts.”

Paypal was once the largest online payment processor for online gambling in the United States, but that all changed in 2003 after the company merged with eBay.

Aside from the Nevada-licensed poker site, Paypal also processes payments for daily fantasy sports related businesses. Early this year, internet giant Yahoo scrapped credit card deposits for its daily fantasy sports platform, but still continues to accept DFS payments via the online payment processing service.