DraftKings Bans Credit Cards, Decision Comes After $450K Fine in Massachusetts
Posted on: August 22, 2025, 09:16h.
Last updated on: August 22, 2025, 09:31h.
- DraftKings will soon bar the use of credit cards
- The decision follows the online sportsbook being fined $450K
- Some states prohibit the use of credit cards for online gaming deposits
DraftKings will soon no longer allow its online sportsbook and iGaming customers to make deposits with credit cards, regardless of whether a state permits funding online gaming accounts on credit.
On Thursday, DraftKings sent its online gaming customers a notice informing them that the use of credit cards will become banned beginning next Monday, August 25. Some credit cards allow transactions related to legal online sports gambling and iCasino platforms, though they often charge hefty fees and high interest for cash advances.
DraftKings has made the strategic business decision to remove credit cards as a deposit option for sportsbook and casino in the United States. The change is intended to help customers avoid cash advance fees and higher interest rates often associated with this payment method and otherwise improve the deposit experience,” the DraftKings notice read.
DraftKings says all user credit card information stored in their accounts will become disabled on Monday. For future deposits, users will need to use a debit card, wire and bank transfer (ACH), Apple Pay, PayPal, Venmo (with an eligible payment method), gift card, or make a cash deposit at a DraftKings retail sportsbook.
Massachusetts Fine
While online casinos are legal in only seven states, online sports betting is regulated in 36 states and Washington, DC. Though brick-and-mortar casinos have historically been cash-based businesses, the emergence of legal online gaming has introduced credit cards to the industry.
Many online sports betting states, including the largest markets, New York, New Jersey, Nevada, and Pennsylvania, allow for credit card deposits. Among the eight states that do not is Massachusetts, the home of DraftKings.
Earlier this month, DraftKings was fined $450K by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) for allowing some users to make deposits with credit cards. The state gaming regulator said at least 218 DraftKings Sportsbook accounts made 242 credit card deposits totaling almost $84K.
Along with the $450K fine, DraftKings was ordered to return the $83,667.92 in credit deposits back to the bettors who made them.
Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, New Hampshire, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Vermont additionally prohibit sportsbooks from allowing credit cards.
Cash Advances
Credit card companies consider transactions related to gambling as cash advances instead of a traditional purchase.
Credit card companies charge a cash advance fee when you use your card’s line of credit to get access to cash. Because card issuers tack on fees and high interest rates to these transactions, cash advances are an expensive way to get extra cash,” explains Jennifer Brozic of Experian.
Brozic says that, along with a cash advance fee that typically ranges between 3% to 5%, such transactions don’t usually come with the same interest-free grace period as purchases. As a result, interest can start accruing immediately.
For example, a person takes a $1,000 cash advance from a credit card. The customer pays a $50 fee (5%). If they take six months to pay back the advance, the interest at 29.99% would amount to $93.73. That brings the total cost of the $1,000 advance to $1,143.72. For those in debt who take longer to pay down the advance, the interest can accrue significantly.
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