Fast Withdrawals Biggest Factor When Choosing New Sportsbook

New research has found that 48.9% of bettors selected withdrawal speed as one of their key considerations when it comes to picking a new betting site.

The survey, commissioned by leading sports betting community OLBG, found that this was of more importance when searching for a sportsbook than payment method options (37.7%), deposit speed (24.6%), affordability checks (16.9%) and open banking features (15.1%).

The findings further highlight the transition in recent years to quick access to winnings becoming more of an expectation. More than 62% of respondents said they expect withdrawals to reach their bank account either instantly or within 30 minutes. A further 20.3% expect withdrawals to be completed within an hour.

Verification processes are also expected to be completed rapidly. More than a quarter of respondents (27.1%) expect identity and payment checks to be completed during sign-up, while a further 46.3% expect the process to take no longer than one hour.

When it comes to funding betting accounts, debit cards remain the most popular payment method, used by 57.7% of respondents in the last 12 months. PayPal was the second most commonly used method at 36.9%, followed by bank transfers (20.3%) and Apple Pay or Google Pay (14.0%).

The survey also found that security remains a major consideration for bettors. When asked how important a bookmaker's track record on payment security is when deciding whether to sign up, respondents gave an average score of 7.7 out of 10. More than 58% rated payment security either 8, 9 or 10 out of 10 for importance.

The survey also found notable differences between men and women. Female bettors were twice as likely to cite affordability checks as important when signing up (26% v 13%) whilst male bettors placed a far greater emphasis on the payment methods available.

However, the importance of withdrawal speed remained a consistent priority for respondents across the United Kingdom - the strongest preference coming from Northern Ireland with 85.7% of respondents highlighting quick access to winnings as the main issue.