Using an agent to handle all transactions can be very useful, but it also involves risks
Using an agent to handle all your online poker transactions can certainly be convenient and cut a few awkward corners, but we should also be aware of the risks. In this article we take a closer look at the subject of making deposits and withdrawals via an agent.
The upside to taking this route is that a player has the opportunity to use certain payment methods that an online poker room in their country doesn’t make available. An agent offers a ‘detour’ that makes such an option possible.
Deposits and withdrawals via an agent are particularly popular with players who use the GGNetwork so it’s perhaps something that we might see used increasingly in the future.
Before we get into the advantages and disadvantages, we should first briefly explain how it all works. An agent – not subjected to the same jurisdictional restrictions as their client, acts simply as an intermediary. The player sends a certain amount to the agent via specialist monetary transaction companies such as Neteller/Skrill/ecoPayz/Bitcoin and the agent credits the amount to the player’s account. The same happens with a withdrawal, with the amount being sent to the agent (usually via P2P) and the agent then transferring to the player. Actually, it’s all very simple!
Pros and cons
If everything goes well, there are numerous advantages for the player who makes use of this service. For one thing, payouts are received much faster than by processing the withdrawal directly through the poker room. Also, the player can often save annoying conversion fees in this way. Players from Europe often have € as currency with one of their e-wallet providers. If a poker room only offers USD as currency, you would have to pay exchange fees for every transaction.
This highlights the big advantage of an agent usually having several payment options at their disposal that the poker room cannot offer the player directly through the usual Cashier facility. For example, it is not uncommon that Neteller/Skrill in particular is not available as a payment option due to different laws in certain countries, and this is where using an agent is the perfect way to get around this problem.
While there are numerous advantages in going through an agent there is, of course, another side. It is not uncommon for the opportunity to process transactions via an agent to be exploited by people to create multiple accounts; bans can be bypassed, and access to poker sites gained from a country that is not allowed.
An even more serious problem is the (lack of) safety afforded to the player in this business relationship because it is one based purely on trust with no legal recourse should something go wrong. With this in mind, think carefully before sending an agent your money. It is not uncommon for players to report that there were problems with the processing via an agent, and some have been cheated out of their money.
If anyone offers to provide you with such a service in a forum or other platform, you should refrain from availing them of their services unless there are concrete reasons that your money will be safe. Remember that online poker providers themselves are absolutely not liable should any problems arise with a player making transactions via an agent, so the risk is 100% assumed by the player.
Will YourPokerDream be available as an agent?
In the case of some of our partner poker rooms we do indeed offer a service to help our players with transactional matters. If you would like to find out more information, please get in touch with our Support team.
You must be logged in to post a comment.