Looks like you are interested to bet cryptocurrency and are wondering where you can safely do that. If this is the case – then you are in the right place. It is no secret that cryptocurrencies are becoming increasingly popular in Nigeria and there are some good reasons behind that, which we won’t cover in detail now as that will require an entire article. For reference, you can look into one of the recent pieces published by Finsmes, where they outline the rates at which cryptocurrency is being adopted in Nigeria and Africa in general.
Now let’s look into how you can integrate crypto into your sports betting hobby. We all understand that crypto is a great investment strategy long-term and that has been proven over and over again throughout the last 10 years. Betting with crypto allows you to accumulate more virtual assets without having to interact with exchanges. A lot of our readers ask us about crypto betting and specifically what are the best betting operators to turn to. This is why we decided to give a definitive answer to this question in our article.
How to Get Started with Cryptocurrency?
If you are here, we can assume that you already know a thing or two about cryptocurrencies. You likely already know where to get it, how to store and use it, so we won’t go explaining all of that here. In case you are just getting started – we have a different article for you, which we published a little while back. The article is called “What You Need to Know About Crypto Betting?” and it would be better for you to start there if you are not yet familiar with the basics of cryptocurrency. If you are already immersed into the world of digital assets then let’s dive right into it.
Is It Legal?
You can hear a lot of speculation related to the recent letter issued to banks by the Central Bank of Nigeria, where banks were notified that facilitating payments for virtual asset exchanges is illegal. Yes, this does mean that banks can’t directly have any business with crypto exchanges, however it doesn’t make it illegal for you to use it. You can easily use third party services to facilitate your crypto payments and exchange it for regular currencies.
Legal Nigerian Crypto-Friendly Bookmakers
If you just go and search for a crypto friendly bookmaker you will likely find some bigger international betting sites, which aren’t the best choices if you are from Nigeria. We have reviewed dozens of local betting brands, so we have a pretty good understanding of what are the best crypto betting sites for a Nigerian punter. This means that all the research you would need to do was already done by us. Apart from just saving you a lot of time it allows you to choose only between legal and licensed betting sites, where you can bet safely. Below we will give you our top picks – bookmakers, who we reviewed extensively and who already have a relatively good reputation in the global betting community.
Paripesa
Next one in line is Paripesa – they are relatively new original Nigerian operators with a valid Nigerian license. So far, they’ve shown their players a good overall betting experience, which is why we decided to feature them on our list. Furthermore, they are crypto-friendly and accept 9 different currencies – we expect this number to grow in the future.
If you are interested in checking what they are all about – we would encourage you to read our Paripesa review. Otherwise, you can go ahead and have a look at everything yourself.
Accepted cryptocurrencies: Litecoin, Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Ripple, Tether on Ethereum, ZCash, Dogecoin
1win
1win is a really cool entry to this list and we are excited to recommend them as one of the most promising crypto sportsbooks out there. They are innovative, offer mobile apps and, of course, accept crypto payments. You can deposit money into your player account by doing bank transfers from any local Nigerian bank and then withdraw that as crypto. You can also make payments using PerfectMoney, in case that sounds like a better option.
1win processes their crypto withdrawals super quickly. For example, if you use a fast network (something like Tron USDT) – the funds will be in your wallet in 10 to 20 minutes. You can also convert currencies right in your player account at reasonable exchange rates. In case this sounds interesting, you are welcome to check out our full 1win review page.
Accepted cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tron, Binance, USD Coin, Tether, Monero, Doge, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Cardano, Zcash, Dash, NEO, Ripple, NEM, Stellar, EOS
Melbet
Melbet is the first one on our list for a good reason – they are a globally recognized betting brand and they make it extremely easy to use cryptocurrencies for betting. On top of that, the selection of accepted cryptos is one of the biggest we could find. There are over 30 different virtual assets you can use, starting from the mainstream ones like Bitcoin and Ethereum all the way to less known ones like OmiseGo and Chainlink.
Feel free visit their website yourself to check everything out or go ahead and read our Melbet review for more details.
Accepted cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Dash, Ethereum, Monero, ZCash, NEM, DigiByte, Bitcoin gold, Verge, QTUM, TRON, Ripple, USD Coin, TrueUSD, Paxos Standard Token, Tether on Ethereum, Tether on Tron, Bitcoin Cash, Chainlink, OmiseGO, Basic Attention Token, Stellar, Ethereum Classic, BitShares, Eos, Wrapped Bitcoin on Ethereum, Wrapped Bitcoin on Tron, Cardano
1xBet
Now we would like to make a stop at 1xBet – everyone knows them and they are the “go-to” bookmaker for millions of sports fans around the world. That’s no mystery, they have good odds, thousands of games, unique markets, fast payouts and anything else you can name. Nevertheless, the main reason why they are on our crypto-friendly list is the 30 different cryptos they accept. Yes, 30, exactly as Melbet does, the currencies themselves are also identical.
If you are already familiar with them, then go ahead and top up your account with crypto. Otherwise, you can have a look at our 1xBet review if you want to know more about them.
Accepted cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Dash, Ethereum, Monero, ZCash, NEM, DigiByte, Bitcoin gold, Verge, QTUM, TRON, Ripple, USD Coin, TrueUSD, Paxos Standard Token, Tether on Ethereum, Tether on Tron, Bitcoin Cash, Chainlink, OmiseGO, Basic Attention Token, Stellar, Ethereum Classic, BitShares, Eos, Wrapped Bitcoin on Ethereum, Wrapped Bitcoin on Tron, Cardano
1xBit
1xBit is a crypto-only sports betting site, likely the most well-known one among players around the world. You can use over 50 different currencies here and the quality of the service is also spot-on. You can find around 2000 football games available every day and most of those games will have over 1000 bets types to choose from. The only thing to keep in mind is that you cannot make deposits or withdrawals using Nigerian Naira, so if you want to use 1xBit – you need to have an account with a crypto exchange.
Accepted cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Dash, Ethereum, Monero, NEM, DigiByte, Bitcoin gold, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum Classic, BitShares, Verge, QTUM, Ripple, Binance Coin BSC, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain, AS Roma, SHIBA INU on Ethereum, SHIBA INU on BSC, Binance USD, Tether on BSC, Polkadot, Eos, USD Coin, TrueUSD, Paxos Standard Token, Tether on Ethereum, Tether on Tron, Wrapped Bitcoin on Tron, Wrapped Bitcoin on Ethereum, Cardano, Dai, Chainlink, OMG Network, Basic Attention Token, TRON, Stellar
Cloudbet
Cloudbet is one of the oldest crypto sportsbooks in the industry. They started working with crypto payments way back in 2013 when almost nobody treated blockchain seriously. Nevertheless, here we are – Cloudbet still has an innovative approach to pretty much everything they do. Their mobile website is exceptionally well optimized for mobile devices. Even if you are using a relatively old and outdated phone – you will still have a rather smooth experience. We have a full detailed Cloudbet review, which you are more than welcome to read if there is anything specific you would like to know about them.
Accepted cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Dash, Ethereum, Monero, NEM, DigiByte, Bitcoin gold, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum Classic, BitShares, Verge, QTUM, Ripple, Binance Coin BSC, SHIBA INU on Ethereum, SHIBA INU on BSC, Binance USD, Tether on BSC, Polkadot, Eos, USD Coin, TrueUSD, Paxos Standard Token, Tether on Ethereum, Tether on Tron, Wrapped Bitcoin on Tron, Wrapped Bitcoin on Ethereum, Cardano, Dai, Chainlink, OMG Network, Basic Attention Token, TRON, Stellar
Where to Get Cryptocurrency?
There are hundreds of different ways you can get your hands on some cryptocurrency and tons of various services and exchanges where you can buy it. We won’t be focusing too much on this because this isn’t a blog about crypto. Nevertheless, if you are a crypto novice, then we might recommend buying cryptocurrency on a centralized exchange. Such exchanges keep your money safe and are user-friendly, so you don’t have to spend a lot of time learning about blockchain unless you feel like it. We can recommend three Nigerian-friendly exchanges – Nairaex, Velox Exchange and Bitpesa. We are not affiliated with them and this is only a recommendation.  Â
Why Should You Use Cryptocurrency for Betting?
Every one of us would have their own reasons to bet with crypto – some may want to accumulate more crypto without spending actual money, while others may just want to support the crypto economy. Whatever your reason is, it is difficult to ignore all the benefits that come along with it. If you are after the accumulation of wealth, then in 3 to 5 years your crypto assets will be worth way more than they are now. If you are an ideological supporter of crypto, the same would apply – it is being massively adopted and you will be there once it truly goes mainstream. There is, however, one additional small short-term benefit that is usually overlooked – cryptos allow you to make very small deposits. There is essentially no limit to how small your deposit may be. Let’s imagine you deposit 1 TRX (Tron), which is around ₦30 and there are no other deposit methods that would allow you to make deposits this small.
Stay in Control
Sports betting is an exciting hobby and that is no secret, it is also well-known that it is quite easy to get carried away. This is why we feel obliged to mention all the risks related to online betting. Remember, this is a hobby and should be treated as such – you should not rely on betting as a source of income. If you feel that your sports betting hobby is negatively impacting your everyday life – then it might be the right time to seek help. A good place to start would be https://www.gamblingtherapy.org/en – they have trained professionals, who you can talk to and support groups where you can discuss your issues together with other people.
