Who we serve › Sweepstakes & social casino
Payment processing for sweepstakes and social casino operators
TL;DR. Sweepstakes and social casino operators can get domestic US card acquiring, including without a US entity, but only from acquirers that have underwritten the model knowingly. The accounts that fail were boarded as generic digital goods, ran one acquirer, and were offboarded when a chargeback month or a risk-appetite change arrived. We place operators with acquirers that price the model correctly and build the second path before it is needed. Around $500M a year of sweepstakes volume currently runs through structures we placed.
Who this is for. Operators processing $100K+ a month in coin purchases, in the US or preparing a US launch, with or without a US entity.
It is not gambling. It is underwritten like gambling.
The dual-currency model (purchasable coins with no cash value, promotional coins that can be redeemed) is legal in most US states because no purchase is necessary. Acquirers do not underwrite legality; they underwrite exposure. What they see is a product with gambling-like engagement, impulse purchases, redemptions that look like winnings to a cardholder, and state-by-state exclusion lists that change. That combination puts the vertical in the same risk tier as regulated gaming at most banks, regardless of how the MCC is coded.
Coding
Boarded as digital goods, discovered as gaming. The discovery usually arrives with a hold or a termination letter.
Disputes
Coin purchases are impulsive; redemptions confuse cardholders. The ratio is higher and spikier than e-commerce.
Geography
Excluded states, offshore group structures and no US entity. Each one narrows the list of acquirers that will take the file.
Four failure modes we see repeatedly.
01
Boarded under the wrong description.
The operator (or its PSP) described the product as game credits. The acquirer finds out from the chargeback narratives. The account is closed and the reserve is held for 30 to 180 days, in most cases the full 180.
02
One acquirer, no second path.
Volume grows, concentration grows with it. A risk-appetite change at the acquirer, which happens on its schedule, stops 100% of revenue. Onboarding a replacement from zero takes weeks.
03
No eligible US entity.
Offshore group structures are common in this vertical. Without a US entity, most domestic acquirers will not board the operator at all, and the operator ends up on a cross-border setup with worse approval and higher cost.
04
Purchase and payout at the same weak provider.
Redemption payouts fail or slow down, players dispute the purchases, the card ratio climbs. The payout rail becomes the purchase rail's problem.
Diagnose. Improve. Prove.
Diagnose
Group structure and which entity can contract. Current acquirer(s), how the account was described at boarding, reserve and hold terms. Decline data by state, card type and issuer. Chargeback reasons split by purchase vs redemption. Payout rail and its failure rate.
Improve
Place the operator with an acquirer that has underwritten sweepstakes knowingly, domestic where an entity allows it, MOR where it does not. Negotiate reserve, cap and release. Separate payout from purchase. Add pay-by-bank for repeat buyers to take pressure off the card ratio.
Prove
Move a bounded share of live volume to the new path. Measure approval by state and issuer, dispute ratio, settlement timing. Expand weight only when the data earns it. Keep the incumbent until the second path has carried real traffic.
~$500M a year, placed.
A sweepstakes operator with a complex, multi-jurisdiction group structure could not get a domestic US solution: the acquirers it approached would not board the structure. It came to us and we found a provider that could. The operator got domestic US processing without restructuring the group and runs around $500M a year through it today.
Figures rounded. Described with the operator's knowledge, without identifying it.
The underwriting file.
Every acquirer that underwrites this model knowingly asks for the same things. Having them ready is the biggest single accelerator.
- Official sweepstakes rules and the no-purchase-necessary (AMOE) mechanism, as published
- State exclusion list and how it is enforced (geolocation, KYC at purchase or at redemption)
- KYC and age verification flow, and at which point it triggers
- Coin pricing, purchase limits, refund policy and the billing descriptor
- Redemption rules: minimums, timing, payout rails, and KYC before first redemption
- Group structure chart with the contracting entity and UBOs
- Processing history: six months of volume, chargeback and refund ratios by month, any terminations
- Legal opinion on the sweepstakes model for the states served, if you have one
Where the volume is and what carries it.
United States
The market. Domestic card acquiring where an entity allows it, MOR where it does not. Pay-by-bank and ACH for repeat purchases. ACH and push-to-card for redemptions. State exclusions enforced before the card is charged.
EU / UK
Usually a different product (licensed gaming or prize competitions) with a different acquirer set. If you run both, they are two stacks, not one.
Can a sweepstakes operator get a US merchant account without a US entity?
Yes. Two routes: a provider acting as merchant of record for the operator, or an acquirer that will board the group structure as it stands. We have used both. A ~$500M/yr operator with a complex offshore group structure, which no domestic acquirer would initially touch, is processing domestically today through a provider we found that could board the structure; separately, we have used MOR to give an operator domestic processing without restructuring its group. MOR is never the cheap option; it is the option that works when there is no eligible local entity.
Why do mainstream processors shut down sweepstakes accounts?
Usually one of three reasons: the account was boarded under a generic digital-goods description and the acquirer later discovered the model; the chargeback ratio from coin purchases crossed a monitoring threshold; or the acquirer's risk appetite for the category changed. The third one happens on the provider's calendar, not yours, which is why a second acquirer already carrying volume is the first thing we build.
What chargeback ratio should a sweepstakes operator expect?
Higher than e-commerce and more spiky, because coin purchases are impulsive and redemptions create disputes when players misunderstand the model. The number depends on your KYC at purchase, your redemption rules and your descriptor. We do not quote a target before seeing your data; we do build the stack so one bad month does not end the account.
Do we need a sweepstakes-specific acquirer?
You need an acquirer that has underwritten the model knowingly and prices it accordingly. Several mainstream acquirers do, through specific programs and with pricing to match; several high-risk brands will board you instantly and hold your funds in month three. Knowing which is which is most of the work.
Which payment methods work for coin purchases in the US?
Cards remain the main rail. Pay-by-bank and ACH-based methods convert well for repeat buyers and carry no card chargeback exposure, which helps the ratio on the card rail. Wallets add coverage. The mix is corridor- and state-specific, and it should be decided from your decline data, not from a provider's catalogue.
How are prize redemptions paid out?
Redemptions are a payout problem separate from purchases: ACH or push-to-card in the US, with KYC before the first redemption. Operators that combine purchase and payout at one provider for convenience often find the provider's payout rail is the weak point. We treat the two flows separately.
How long does it take to get a sweepstakes operator live?
With a complete underwriting file, a few weeks from first contact to live traffic on the first acquirer; faster when the acquirer is already integrated with your platform or gateway. Without a complete file, months. The checklist on this page is what every acquirer will ask for; having it ready is the single biggest accelerator.
How is Milestone paid for this?
By the provider you end up using, as a commission on volume. There is no fee to the operator for the review. We place with whichever of our ~30 providers fits, so we have no reason to push one.
iGaming by license
What MGA, UKGC, Curaçao and US state licenses open at the acquirer.
High-risk payments
Reserves, holds, and what underwriters actually price.
FAQ
MOR, instant approval, reserves, and the cases behind our positions.
Tell us about your structure.
Entity, current acquirer, states served, monthly coin volume. We reply within one business day. No fee for the review.