Formerly known as Centricom, POLi is an interesting payment system, which allows users to make instant online payments via their online banking. It is available exclusively to consumers in Australia and New Zealand. Due to its simplicity, convenience and lack of processing fees, it is a great alternative to credit cards and digital wallets.
- Using POLi in Online Casinos
- How Does POLi Work
- Funding Casino Accounts with POLi
- Withdrawing Funds to POLi
- POLi on Mobile
- Security
- Advantages of POLi
- Disadvantages of POLi
Top Poli Casinos
POLi Payments Pty Ltd was founded in 2006 in Australia and has, since then, grown to become one of the largest and most preferred online payment services in this part of the world. In 2014, the company was acquired by SecurePay Holdings, a fully owned subsidiary of Australia Post. This, along with the payment service provider’s experience of more than a decade, has given customers security and a peace of mind that their money is in good hands.
The POLi system uses a direct connection between users’ online banking accounts and Internet-based merchants. Users do not need to sign up an account with the service. All they need is to have an account with one of the associated banks in Australia and New Zealand and have their online banking activated. When you make purchases online, POLi would transfer the payment safely and instantly without any additional fees.
The immediate availability of the funds is what has made POLi such a popular payment method, including among online casino players. It is the perfect way to deposit funds into your gaming balance and, then, to withdraw your casino winnings. There are certain requirements and considerations online gamblers should take into account, however, before choosing POLi for casino payments.
Using POLi in Online Casinos
This payment system has gained great popularity among online casino players in recent years for several reasons, one of which is, of course, its great availability. It is accepted in more than 60 web-based casinos, many of which tailored to Australian customers. A large number of Internet merchants, including airlines, international money transfer services, gaming sites, and bookmakers are also working with POLi. Customers can use it for payments on streaming and social media platforms, and many more.
Moreover, the majority of banks in Australia and New Zealand are available with POLi. The list of associated banking institutions include Bank of Melbourne, Bankwest, Bendigo Bank, Citibank, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ, CUA, ME Bank, NAB, Newcastle Permanent, People’s Choice Credit Union, BOQ, BankSA, St. George Bank, IMB Building Society Suncorp, Westpac, as well as several banks in New Zealand, namely ASB, Bank of New Zealand, Kiwibank, and TSB. In order for casino players to make use of POLi payments, they need to have an account with one of the above-mentioned banks. In addition, they need to activate their online banking.
Similar services exist almost everywhere around the world – there are numerous payment methods, usually called instant bank transfers or online bank transfers. Unlike regular online bank transfers, however, they are conducted in real time, which makes them extremely popular among online users. Not to mention the safety and anonymity they provide – note that, sometimes, these third-party services do not receive any of your personal or banking information.
Your bank may also receive information only about the payer – you, and about POLi. As a result, you can enjoy playing casino games for real money using your online banking account even if your bank does not tolerate gambling-related transactions.
How Does POLi Work?
As it is clearly explained on its website, POLi is an online payment debit method, which facilitates real-time financial transactions over the Internet. It acts as an intermediary between the bank and the merchant, allowing customers to make purchases on various websites that would not otherwise offer payments via online banking. The funds are transferred securely through the bank’s own online systems and POLi does not store any personal or financial data.
Unlike regular online banking, however, the POLi system provides very fast and, often, instant processing of transactions. Anytime you purchase something on the Internet and decide to pay for it using this service, the money will be immediately taken from your bank account and sent online. The merchant will receive an instant receipt, along with the funds. As the latest version of the system is entirely browser-based, customers can make POLi payments from any computer or mobile device.
Merchants are assured that they will get their payment in a proper and timely manner. Even if it takes a few days for the money to reach the retailer, the process begins almost immediately. This helps the merchant establish a relationship of trust with the client and authorize the release of the sold product or service. Customers, on the other hand, can enjoy fast, secure and convenient payments that are free of any additional fees.
Funding Casino Accounts with POLi
POLi connects directly to your bank account, which means you do not need to register and remember yet another password. Payments are quickly processed and the procedure is simplified. More importantly, the service does not have access to your personal or banking details. In the past, several banks have raised certain security concerns that POLi mirrors their online banking pages. All issues have since then been addressed by the company, so players can rest assured they would not become victims of fraud or identity theft.
Making a casino deposit via POLi should be extremely easy for everyone who has used online banking before. In order to make the transfer, you need to be logged into your casino account and open the Cashier or Payments page of the casino website. From the list of available deposit options, you need to pick POLi, but note that some gaming sites would list it as Online Banking or Internet Banking.
A pop-up window should appear and in it, you will be asked to specify the sum you wish to deposit, as well as the bank you have an account with. Then, you will be redirected to the online banking facility of your bank where you will need to sign up using your user ID and password. Some banks may provide their customers with different log-in credentials, as well as with some type of two-factor authentication.
Once you log in and confirm the transaction, it will be carried out immediately. In most cases, your deposit will show up in your casino balance within a few minutes. There may be a delay, depending on your bank and on the casino you play at. Another important thing to know is that POLi does not charge for the payments. Banks and casinos, on the other hand, may impose some processing fees.
Withdrawing Funds to POLi
Some casinos that offer POLi as a deposit method have also added the service for withdrawals. Note that the use of this system for cashing out casino winnings is very limited, as it was originally designed for facilitating payments from customers to merchants on the Internet. Still, you will be able to withdraw funds from certain gambling sites. But to do this, you will need to register an account with the service. Typically, only merchants sign up and POLi is not an e-wallet. Instead, it connects the customer, the bank and the merchant.
There are several options to choose from when signing up for a POLi account – Australian businesses, companies based in New Zealand or overseas, or Australian non-profit organizations. Casino players who wish to use the service for withdrawals may register as a non-profit or make an inquiry. In case you are allowed to register an account and use it to cash out your winnings, you would be charged AU$0.30 per transaction. There might be an additional GST tax, which is 10% of the transferred amount of money. Whether you are eligible for the tax or not, however, can be checked beforehand.
Once you register an account and find a casino to accept POLi for withdrawals, you should pick it from the list of available options on the casino platform. When you choose the number of funds you wish to cash out and your bank, you will proceed to sign in to your online banking account. After you confirm the transaction, it would take between 3 and 5 days for the money to reach your bank account.
POLi on Mobile
In its attempt to meet the rapidly increasing demand for mobile payments, POLi added a mobile capability back in 2013. Since then, it has worked with the mobile versions of online banking facilities provided by the majority of leading banks in Australia. There is no native POLi application, however, although payment services apps are quite popular right now and some of them greatly outshine the original desktop versions of these platforms.
Instead, the POLi payments system operates in-browser and is, therefore, available to most Android and iOS mobile devices. Customers who wish to make a deposit into their preferred casino should just open the casino site on their smartphone or tablet, go to the Cashier page, and pick POLi. Then, they can proceed with the transaction the same way as they do from their desktop or laptop computers.
There is nothing different in the process. In fact, it is extremely simple and easy-to-understand when compared to other mobile deposit methods. Once again, to top up your casino balance via POLi, you need to make sure your bank works with the service. Moreover, you need to check if your online banking is activated and it can be opened on mobiles.
Security
One of the best aspects of using POLi for casino gaming is the fact that no personal or banking data is shared with the payments provider – usernames, passwords, etc. Unlike similar services, it does not obtain or store any information about the user or the financial transaction. The reason for this is very simple – it is the fact that the actual transfer is conducted by the bank, not by the service. This makes POLi as a secure and reliable method for deposits into online casinos. All transactions carried out are actually protected by the online banking system of your bank.
Banks, on the other hand, do not disclose confidential information to third parties. In fact, financial institutions have some of the most sophisticated online security measures in place. When connecting the bank with the online casino, or any other web-based merchant, POLi uses a proxy server, which provides enhanced security against DNS poisoning and other threats.
The company always checks the SSL certificate of the bank and makes other transaction integrity checks in order to prevent fraud. In addition, all communication is encrypted over SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) using 2048-bit SSL Certificates. This means that all transaction data, as well as all user information, remains private and secure.
One might argue that there is no true anonymity on the Internet and while this is technically true, it is also true that payments made via services similar to POLi are as close to being anonymous as they could get. In reality, POLi receives no information about the customer – name, address, email or phone number. It also does not store the transaction data, nor the username and password for your online banking. The online casino, on the other hand, gets information about the transaction from POLi. Therefore, no sensitive data is shared with it, either.
Advantages of POLi
There are many ways to top up your online casino account and while many players still rely on traditional methods such as bank wires and credit cards, an increasing number of users are now looking at 21-st century services that are much simpler and more convenient. One of these modern, fast, and secure ways of conducting electronic transfers is POLi. It is certainly widely available to casino players based in Australia and New Zealand. Many casino enthusiasts prefer this service because they do not want to use their credit or debit cards for gambling. Of course, some banks and credit card issuers also do not process transactions that are in any way linked to gambling activities.
Compared to many other payment processors, POLi facilitates fast transactions that are sometimes conducted within a minute or two. Transfers made via regular online banking, for instance, usually takes at least a few hours to complete, while bank transfers may take a few days. Users who want to play casino games or place bets on sports events, however, prefer having their money readily available as soon as possible.
Another thing to take into account when choosing the best casino payment method is the high level of online security, provided by POLi. The system does not store or even cache any user data or information about the financial transactions. It is no doubt essential to make sure the service you use keeps all your data private and protected from various online security threats.
Deposits via POLi are not only fast, convenient and secure but also come with no additional fees. This is a huge advantage, considering most payment services do charge transactions with some percentage of the transferred amount. Some credit cards and mobile payment systems impose fees of up to 10%, which compared to the no-cost policy of POLi is really unpleasant. In addition, there are no limits to the funds you can move using this service. It all depends on the bank you have an account with, as well as on the casino you wish to play for real money.
Disadvantages of POLi
It is true that casino players do not need to have a credit card or register a separate account in order to make use of POLi payments. While these are obvious advantages, those who decide to make casino deposits through this system might have to face its shortcomings. The most important limitation is the availability of the payment method – it can be used exclusively by residents of Australia and New Zealand who have online banking accounts with one of the associated banks.
On its official website, the company does say that it may expand to other countries and territories in the future. Until that happens, casino players based outside Australia and New Zealand would need to look for alternative solutions. Those who can use POLi payments, however, should also check for alternatives, but this time, with regards to the service’s potential for withdrawals.
Some casinos oriented towards the Australian audiences claim they pay out winnings to players’ bank accounts via POLi. Even if you find such a casino website, however, you will need to register an account on the official POLi site. This may lead to a few difficulties, most notably the complication of registering your account as a business account. The service does not offer other options, so the only way to sign up is to send a request and contact POLi’s support staff.
Last, but not least, the payments transferred using the POLi system are irrevocable. This means that unlike deposits made via credit cards, for instance, these transactions cannot be reversed. While this little detail may sound insignificant compared to the benefits one would reap from an instant, no-cost, and anonymous deposit method, it might result in quite unpleasant inconveniences. Some banks may block the payment in case they detect it is being made to or from a gambling website.
