Neteller is an electronic money transfer system which can be used to make deposits and withdrawals at practically all mobile and online casinos. It can also be used to transfer money to friends and relatives, both at home and abroad.
The financial services industry is often seen as a dull, dry place, with little action to distract from the endless figures and accountancy issues. But if you’re looking for more action and excitement, Neteller is a good place to start.
For a start, it’s a bit of an international traveller, having re-located across the Atlantic in earlier times. It has also fallen foul of changes to government regulation (through no fault of its own, it must be pointed out) and attempted a complete re-focusing of its target market, with limited success…
Neteller was originally founded in Canada in 1999. In those early days, it carved out a very profitable niche as a means of facilitating payments to online casinos in the formative days of online gaming. It operated primarily throughout North America, but it was particularly successful in the United States.
As it turned out though, it was a bit too successful. The vast majority of its revenues were derived from this source: at its peak, around 95% of revenues were gained from payments to and from online gaming sites, with most of these based in the United States. This lack of diversity left the company especially vulnerable when the Federal Government tightened the regulations with regard to online gaming. Players’ accounts were temporarily frozen as the use of financial services to make payments to online gaming sites was banned. As a result, the company’s revenues crashed.
So bad did the situation become that the entire company re-located across the pond to the United Kingdom dependent territory of the Isle of Man in 2004. Although the company’s European payments service continued unaffected by the America furore, revenues continued to fall, from around $240 million in 2006 to just over $60 million in 2010.
The company has continued to attempt to diversify into other payment services, but with limited success. The majority of its turnover continues to be derived from the gaming industry, and its attempts to disentangle itself from the American market have only recently been completed. The company finally severed all ties with the US only as recently as 2019.
Despite these ongoing difficulties, the Neteller service survives and is thriving in the European market and in the wider world too. There have however, been other consequences, as the original Neteller company and service have undergone several mergers, take overs and changes in ownership over the years.
The company was acquired by Optimal Payments PLC in 2015, and merged with rival payment service Skrill shortly afterwards. The two services continue to operate independently as separate brands, but are in effect owned by the same company.
Neteller remains under the same ownership, but the Optimal Payments has since been re-branded as Paysafe Group, named after its primary payment service Paysafecard. At the time of writing, Neteller, Skrill and Paysafecard are all operating independently under the Paysafe Group umbrella.
Neteller – how does it work?
Neteller is a service which enables you to make payments for online goods and services. You can also use it to transfer money to friends and family anywhere across the world. To open an account, all you need to do is give your name and e-mail address, and think of a secure password. There is no charge for opening an account.
You will then need to link your new Neteller account with your bank account, credit or debit card in order to load it with funds. You can then use your account to make online payments and to transfer money to other people or accounts. For online payments, just click on the Neteller icon at the checkout and follow the instructions. To transfer money to friends, all you will need is their e-mail address. If they don’t have an account, they will need to open one – for free of course.
If you are using a smartphone, the easiest way to use Neteller is to download the app, but you can use it on any internet enabled device.
There are no fees to pay when using Neteller to make payments either online or in real world stores and restaurants. Instead, the retailer or vendor pays a small commission when accepting your payment. Money transfers are subject to a fee of 1.45%, excluding any currency conversion involved in the transfer.
There are fees to be paid when uploading funds to your Neteller account. There are dozens of different ways to do this. At the time of writing, the fee for all these alternatives is 2.5%. You will also need to pay a fee if there is any currency conversion involved in the completion of your transaction. These can vary according to the specific currencies involved, but are generally set at around 4%.
Finally, it’s always best to use your Neteller funds to actually make purchases, as there are also fees when you withdraw your funds as cash. At the time of writing, these are set at 1.75%.
Summary
Neteller has had a chequered history in terms of history and ownership, but it remains a reliable and convenient way to make online payments. It is widely available as a payment option at online bingo sites and casinos which are licenced for UK based players. Look out for the Neteller icon at the checkout or banking page of your chosen site.
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