Sports betting market and its exponential rise in India, despite being tagged as a ‘believed illegal’ activity with no proper regulation has always amused trade pundits. The layer of obscurity around India’s medieval set of Gambling Laws with no proper explanations has always motivated Indians to harvest bulky wealth from this ‘tug of war’ situation.

Renowned sportsbooks along with several other sports betting operators always try their best to break the alleged taboo notion labeled for sports betting and allied services. One of the crucial components of trust building and offering a secured atmosphere for hassle-free betting atmosphere is the ‘KYC Process’. Let’s quickly on-look fundamental need of ‘KYC’ process in sports betting and its actual meaning-

KYC and its need in Gambling Sector

In simplest terms, KYC can be elaborated as Know-Your-Customer and essentially sports betting websites need to verify customer’s provided information to minimize several fraudulent activities. These name and fame blotting activities can be elaborated as match-fixing, illegal/ underground betting, money laundering, tax evasion, betting syndicates and several other illegal activities. Moreover, it helps sports betting platforms to flush out bots along with this it verifies the source of initial funds and helps to block money whitewashing attempts from regular bank defaulters.

Documents mostly enlisted for KYC Process

To minimize confusion, most of the renowned sports betting websites such as Betway, 10CRIC and INDIBET requests common set of documents from their new members and can be easily attached in jpg format-

·         Identity Proof- Common documents are Aadhar Card, Driving License, Passport, PAN Card.

·         Address Proof- Rental Agreements, Aadhar Card, Passport or Utility Bills (Electricity and Water Bills).

·         Source of Funds- Credit Card Statement, Updated Bank Statement with visible Account No. and other details.

Users should know that largely all the sports betting website doesn’t offer the facility of withdrawing the winning amount from betting account to users bank account until or unless the KYC process is duly performed and verified from the betting operators.

Is KYC really a step towards curbing Fraud? - A Final Overview

Latest economic data available about the betting market hints at the fact that Indian betting market has touched a $200 billion lifetime business. All of the unregulated winnings and profits as of now are slicing out a visible chance of advent tax revenue for the government and it is believed that about 45% of the pile is contributed towards funding illegal activities.

KYC measures being initiated by responsible sports betting ventures can be seen as the first step to detour from the malign image of the betting industry. The process ensures safeguards users as well as the operators’ interest and in a way sends out a clear message that there is no room for illegal betting practices. Although, the process is not completed yet and more brave steps are needed to be formulated in this direction to shrug off gloomy portrayal of the betting and gambling activities in India.