BTC, ETH, USDT

Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether: Payment Giants for Crypto Poker and Casino Sites

In recent years, the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies has undisputedly changed the world of finance. Cryptocurrencies are also impacting the gambling industry, with an increasing number of poker and casino sites adding them as payment methods.

In this article, we will dissect the three most popular cryptos by market capitalization: Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Tether (USDT).

These three digital assets serve vastly different purposes: Bitcoin is used as digital gold, Ethereum is the backbone of decentralized applications, and Tether is a so-called ‘stablecoin’ that anchors crypto volatility.

Whether you are looking to invest or just want to avoid KYC verification on gambling sites by using cryptocurrencies, our article aims to arm you with the insights needed to navigate the fast-evolving crypto world.

Bitcoin (BTC): The Digital Gold Standard

Bitcoin, launched in 2009 by an unknown person or group under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, is the first cryptocurrency to solve the double-spending problem through blockchain technology.

In digital currency systems, double-spending was a massive problem as the same unit of currency could be spent more than once. Blockchain technology solved this issue through decentralization, consensus mechanisms, and cryptographic verification.

Designed to be a peer-to-peer electronic cash system, Bitcoin’s price surge made it a form of store of value, often dubbed ‘digital gold’.

Bitcoin (BTC): The Universal Currency for Crypto Poker

While Bitcoin’s journey has made it known as ‘digital gold,’ its original function as a peer-to-peer electronic cash system makes it the cornerstone of the crypto poker industry. Most leading crypto poker rooms accept Bitcoin as their primary currency, cementing its position as the universal payment standard for decentralized gambling.

• Universal Acceptance and Liquidity: BTC is the most widely accepted cryptocurrency across all online platforms, offering unmatched liquidity. This means you can easily move funds into your poker room and exchange winnings back into fiat currency (or stablecoins) with minimal effort.
• Decentralized Security: Bitcoin’s unparalleled decentralization provides a robust, censorship-resistant way to manage your bankroll, offering a level of security and independence that traditional banking cannot match.

Why Bitcoin Dominates

Bitcoin’s rising price is mostly due to its fixed supply. The cryptocurrency is capped at 21 million coins, with 19.84 million in current circulation as of April 2025. Bitcoin’s scarcity is similar to that of precious metals, and it drives its value proposition.

Another driving force behind Bitcoin’s price is the so-called ‘halving events’. The coin’s mining rewards are cut in half every 4 years, which reduces new supply and usually triggers bullish (upward-trending) runs in the market.

An important characteristic of Bitcoin that contributed to its popularity is its complete decentralization. Its complete decentralization means no single legal entity controls the currency, making it resistant to government interference, such as arbitrary inflation. This cannot be said of traditional ‘fiat currencies’, which are government-issued and are not backed by precious metal, so they can be inflated at will.

These factors led not only private individuals but also many companies to invest in Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset. MicroStrategy Inc., an American software company in the business intelligence industry, holds more than 500,000 BTC (worth more than $42 billion) as of April 2025.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs (exchange-traded funds) like BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ($IBIT) have also brought institutional liquidity into the market since their launch in 2024.

Challenges & Criticism

Despite Bitcoin’s huge success so far, the pioneering cryptocurrency faces several challenges and criticisms.

The most commonly repeated argument against Bitcoin is that it has scalability issues: the cryptocurrency’s network can process only around 7 transactions per second, which is far slower than Visa’s 24,000 transactions per second. There are solutions underway for this problem, for example, the Lightning Network, which aims to enable fast, cheap, and scalable transactions by moving most Bitcoin payments off the main blockchain. While this technology might be promising, it is still very much underutilized.

Another major argument against Bitcoin concerns its sustainability. Bitcoin mining consumes around 150 TWh of energy per year, more than the total energy consumption of some small countries. Mining with renewable energy is on the rise, though: some estimates suggest that more than half of Bitcoin mining is green already.

Bitcoin might also face regulatory pressure in the future, as governments fear its potential for tax evasion and illicit transactions. In 2021, Bitcoin experienced a temporary hashrate drop (a reduction in the network’s total computational power) because the Chinese government issued a mining ban.

The Future of Bitcoin

At the end of 2024, the price of a single Bitcoin reached $100,000, and even though the price fell in February 2025, the currency’s institutional adoption is still on the rise. It seems that Bitcoin might be a long-term store of value competing with gold, and could also be used to hedge against inflation amid global economic instability.

Ethereum (ETH): The World’s Decentralized Computer

Ethereum launched in 2015, six years after Bitcoin introduced blockchain technology to the world. While Bitcoin’s blockchain was primarily designed for peer-to-peer payments, Ethereum’s inventor, Vitalik Buterin, and his team sought to expand its utility by enabling smart contract functionality.

Smart contracts are programmable, self-executing agreements that run when certain conditions are met. These contracts enable decentralized applications (dApps) to operate without intermediaries such as banks or tech companies.

Ethereum (ETH): Powering the Provably Fair Crypto Casino

Ethereum’s innovation lies in its smart contract functionality, which has revolutionized more than just finance; it’s changing the fundamental trust model of gambling. Ethereum’s smart contract platform is the technological backbone for many modern crypto casino games, enabling verifiable fairness.

• Provably Fair Technology: Many next-generation crypto casinos use the Ethereum blockchain or EVM-compatible networks (such as Polygon or Binance Smart Chain) to run their Random Number Generator (RNG) logic. This allows the player to independently verify that the game’s outcome (e.g., the card dealt or the dice roll) was truly random and untampered with after the round is finished. This level of transparency is impossible in traditional online casinos.
• dApp Integration: Ethereum facilitates Decentralized Applications (dApps). Some dedicated crypto poker platforms operate entirely as dApps, running their entire software directly on the blockchain, eliminating the need to trust a centralized operator.

Ethereum’s Innovations

While Bitcoin is ‘just’ digital money on a blockchain, Ethereum’s blockchain is programmable, opening the door to groundbreaking innovations in the world of cryptos.

EVM

The heart of these innovations is the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), a decentralized computer that powers the cryptocurrency. This EVM executes the smart contracts by processing transactions in a secure environment.

The EVM is Turing-complete, meaning it can perform any computation if given enough resources. This makes it very flexible for developers to write code and build dApps without needing to trust each other or a central authority, since trust is built on decentralized consensus mechanisms. The EVM powers DeFi, NFTs, and DAOs.

DeFi

DeFi or Decentralized Finance means that Ethereum’s smart contracts make financial services possible without banks or any intermediaries, for example,e by automated loans with collateral enforced by the smart contracts.

DeFi services include lending and borrowing (via Aave and Compound), decentralized exchanges (via Uniswap and SushiSwap), and stablecoin issuance (via MakerDAO).

Total Value Locked (TVL) in DeFi peaked at $180 billion in 2021, with Ethereum hosting ~60% of all DeFi protocols.

NFTs

Ethereum’s standards also enable the creation, ownership, and trading of unique digital assets. NFTs rely on smart contracts to verify their scarcity and ownership on the blockchain.

NFTs can be digital art, such as CryptoPunks or Bored Ape Yacht Club, or virtual real estate in Decentraland. NFT prices vary, with some worth practically nothing and others selling for millions of dollars, like Beeple’s $69 million artwork sold during the 2021 NFT boom.

NFTs are now present in music and literature, too, with artists and authors releasing their albums and books as non-fungible tokens. What’s more, brands like Samsung or Adidas buy virtual land to ‘build’ virtual stores on.

DAOs

Ethereum also enables DAOs, or Decentralized Autonomous Organizations, which many claim to be the future of society. These leaderless communities are governed by code and their members’ votes.

A DAO worth mentioning is MakerDAO, which manages DAI, the largest decentralized stablecoin with a market capitalization of around $5 billion. Its members decide on fees and collateral types by voting.

Another interesting DAO is the ConstitutionDAO, whose members aim to bid on an original copy of the Constitution of the United States.

The Merge & Ethereum 2.0

Ethereum has also faced challenges and criticism in the past years. The cryptocurrency’s popularity led to network congestion, sometimes resulting in transaction fees as high as $50, while competitors like Solana (SOL) and Cardano (ADA) offer significantly lower transaction fees.

In September 2022, Ethereum transitioned from Proof-of-Work (PoW) to Proof-of-Stake (PoS) with the ‘The Merge’ upgrade.

PoW systems like Bitcoin are very energy-intensive and also limit scalability. With The Merge, Ethereum addressed environmental concerns by reducing energy consumption by 99.95 percent, and also paved the way for future improvements in scalability.

One of these improvements, called ‘’Proto-Danksharding’ was already launched in 2024, and Ethereum 2.0’s scalability roadmap has ‘Full Danksharding’ as the next milestone, which is said to increase Ethereum’s transactions per second to more than 100,000, possibly reducing transaction fees as well.

Tether (USDT): The stablecoin powering crypto markets

Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies designed to maintain a stable value, typically pegged to a traditional fiat currency such as the US dollar. Stablecoins aim to offer the fast, borderless transactions of cryptocurrencies while avoiding their significant volatility.

The most frequently traded stablecoin is Tether (USDT) with a market capitalization of $144 billion as of April 2025. Around 80 percent of Bitcoin trades USDT as a trading pair, and the stablecoin also serves as a safe haven during crypto market crashes (like the Terra-LUNA collapse of 2022), as it is designed to be pegged 1:1 to the US dollar.

Tether (USDT): The Crypto Poker Player’s Stable Bankroll

Tether (USDT) is a stablecoin that solves the most significant pain point of using volatile cryptocurrencies in gambling. For active players, depositing and withdrawing using USDT at a crypto poker site or crypto casino protects your bankroll from the dramatic price swings of BTC and ETH.

• Volatility Mitigation: Because USDT is pegged to the US dollar (1 USDT approx 1 USD), your bankroll’s value remains stable. If you win $1,000 in crypto, you can immediately convert it to USDT and know your winnings are protected even in the event of a sudden market crash.
• Fast and Low-Cost Transfers: USDT is often issued on high-speed, low-fee networks such as TRC-20 (TRON). This means you get the benefit of instantaneous deposits and withdrawals without the high gas fees sometimes associated with the main Ethereum network. This makes it a preferred in-game currency for tracking your value in dollar terms.

Lawsuit & Criticism

The stablecoin’s opaque reserves and frequent legal battles have made it controversial, but its centralized control has also made it indispensable in the world of cryptocurrencies.

Apart from the obvious criticism that, unlike most cryptos, it is not decentralized, Tether has also faced lawsuits because, contrary to its claims, Tether Limited lacked sufficient USD backing.

The company claimed that each USDT was backed by 1:1 cash or cash-equivalent reserves, but it later emerged that it was only backed by around 50 percent. In 2021, the company paid an $18.5 million fine to the New York Attorney General for misrepresenting reserves. As of 2024, Tether’s reserves are composed of 90 percent cash and short-term treasuries and 10 percent other assets, such as gold, Bitcoin, and corporate debt.

Some critics allege that Tether ‘prints’ USDT to prop up Bitcoin prices, but as of April 2025, there is no conclusive evidence to support this claim.

Governments are currently tightening stablecoin regulations, which could impact USDT’s dominance. For Tether to maintain its market-leading position, it must improve transparency to maintain users’ trust. It must also be able to compete with alternatives like the decentralized stablecoin DAI or Circle (USDC), which is provenly pegged 1:1 to the US dollar and backed by cash and bonds in bank reserves.

Bitcoin vs. Ethereum vs. Tether

Before You Invest in Crypto

Apart from investment opportunities, cryptocurrencies are a great way to deposit and withdraw funds from poker and casino sites.

Fiat currency transactions usually have a much longer processing time, often measured in days, and relatively high transaction fees. As an increasing number of online poker platforms support crypto transactions that are usually feeless and lightning-fast, they might be the most convenient payment methods for most poker and casino players.

Before you decide to buy crypto, though, you should be aware that the crypto market is still quite young, and Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the USDT stablecoin are evolving rapidly. Owning or trading most cryptocurrencies always carries the risk of losing money because of their highly volatile nature.

It is advised to take the time to understand the assets you want to hold and learn some basic risk management before buying crypto. To end our article, here are a few tips to make crypto investments safer.

Choose a Reputable Exchange

There are many shady cryptocurrency exchanges out there, so make sure to use a legit service. Coinbase, Binance, and Kraken are legitimate exchanges. Each has its pros and cons, with Coinbase best for beginners, Binance offering the highest liquidity, and Kraken being the most secure.

Secure Your Investments

Always enable Two-Factor Authentication on the exchange platform you use to prevent your cryptos from being easily stolen. If you plan to hold your cryptos for the long term, consider buying a hardware wallet like Ledger or Trezor.

Diversify Your Portfolio

As with all assets, portfolio diversification is a great way to manage risk. The most commonly recommended diversification for cryptos is 60 percent BTC for long-term value storage, 30 percent ETH for its growth potential in DeFi or NFTs, and 10 percent USDT to hedge against volatility.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be construed as professional investment advice. Investing carries risks, including the potential loss of capital. Always conduct your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. The author and publisher are not responsible for any financial losses incurred as a result of actions taken based on the content of this article. Invest at your own risk.

Conclusion: Mastering Your Digital Bankroll

You now possess the foundational knowledge to confidently navigate the digital landscape of crypto poker and crypto casino sites. The choice between Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether is not about picking a winner, but about matching the asset to your financial goals:

• Choose Bitcoin (BTC) for universal acceptance and long-term decentralized value storage.
• Choose Ethereum (ETH) for access to next-generation, provably fair gaming and decentralized applications.
• Choose Tether (USDT) and other stablecoins to protect your active bankroll from market volatility and ensure fast, predictable cashouts.

By prioritizing security, understanding transaction speeds, and leveraging the stability of Tether for your betting funds, you can maximize the benefits of crypto speed, privacy, and control while minimizing the risks. This digital revolution offers not just a payment method, but a superior, more transparent way to manage your funds in the world of online gambling.

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