Mastercard - Speak to your reps NOW.

**casinojack** · 3 February 2010, 2:46 pm

Some of us have lost Mastercard due to a current Mastercard process. Please speak to your AM to see how you may or may not be affected. This is 99% for USA players, but depending on how the unit was set up with the casino, is best to speak to them. All our properties are currently NOT accepting MC till we have conformation with the banks. This is industry wide...

**thepokerkeep** · 3 February 2010, 2:54 pm

Earlier today, Jeremy at PAL posted a warning about this happening. Apparently it will be Visa and MC that are affected.

This involves all Visa and Mastercards held by U.S. customers. If what I have been told is correct, they are all being shut off to online gaming. I realize there are ways to get around coding, etc. Apparently the processors have been worried about this for scenario for a while and yesterday it finally hit. Right now only people inside of the payment processing world are aware of this.

If this is true, it is the end of CC payment processing in the U.S. It apparently is the start of enforcing the new laws pre-legislation. I was also told that banks are holding funds everywhere and starting to charge exorbitant fines to the processors to get their money out.

Allegedly, Mastercard has been monitoring thousands of transactions and has been able to identify customers in which they believe are being rerouted to un-coded processors.

Then they got all the various processors who do what is called "cascading" in the processing industry. In other words, the processors always try to send transactions through normally first, and if it doesn't go through, they bounce them through un-coded.

Bottom line from my understanding though is that the CC companies finally figured out how gambling transactions were getting through and have started identifying all these processors, holding money, and stopping the transactions.

PAL link

**casinojack** · 3 February 2010, 3:04 pm

Not be be nick pick, but the correct term is MIS coded, not un-coded. I know you quoted this, but this is a huge difference so.......

Some use these terms incorrecly, and in the near future might be imporatant to really get the difference.

Plus is MC only, not VISA...yet..

**TheGooner** · 3 February 2010, 7:35 pm

Where mastercard goes, VISA follows. These two might technically be rivals, but they've pretty much been worknig as a cosy duopoly for years now.

I worked on card processing transaction systems for a dozen or so years, and at the time of UIGEA I noted that Credit Card systems have been coding and categorising merchants and their associated transactions since the early 1990's - so despite the general banking system complaining about onerous UIGEA changes - Credit Card companies could easily enforce it.

The two financial companies information reporting is also first rate, I was amazed at their profiling and data tools when working with them to establish lisnks and authorisation limits. and there was little doubt that they could easily identify mis-categorised processors through data analysis if they wanted.

With the UIGEA implementation date looming closer - it looks like they want NOW!

**Skinski** · 4 February 2010, 5:05 pm

Another headache for a large base of players.

**Anthony** · 4 February 2010, 6:45 pm

This is very concerning.

It looks like we are going to see an effort to enforce UIGEA before anything can come out of congress that might revoke it.

**Leo** · 4 February 2010, 7:14 pm

If this is purely because of US restrictions, I don't see why Mastercard is being removed as a payment option for non-US players?

**Chips** · 4 February 2010, 7:51 pm

MC has historically been rather pricky imo. I received this news today from one of my Rival brands. As CJ said.. industry wide.

**JonOfFinsbury** · 5 February 2010, 5:28 am

If this is helpful: http://www.egrmagazine.com/news/5147...e-to-pay.thtml

We can confirm it IS Visa too, now - update on the story folllows shortly

**JonOfFinsbury** · 5 February 2010, 6:06 am

THE CRACKDOWN on US online gambling credit card payments that began on Wednesday is being operated by Visa as well as rival US credit card giant Mastercard, EGRmagazine.com has now confirmed, with tens of thousands of US online gamblers likely to have been affected.

**Webzcas** · 5 February 2010, 6:36 am

Thanks for confirming that Visa are also taking action Jon.

Not good news

**giggles7p** · 5 February 2010, 6:38 am

Am i to assume also that all wired plastics and debit cards that carry the MC/Visa logo's will also be effected?

This really sucks!

I do remember though that when i first received my first mastercard there was a clause in the terms and conditions that said the card could not be used for gambling without being penalized, fined and account closed. And this was back 15 years ago, so they never approved of using the cards to gamble, but now they are enforcing it.

**Anthony** · 5 February 2010, 8:08 am

Not good at all.

**Captain** · 5 February 2010, 9:38 am

This very depressing to say the least. I think I am going to go back to bed now.

**Anthony** · 5 February 2010, 11:59 am

Just wanted everyone to know an auditor just made a deposit via Visa and it went through no problem.

That doesn't necessarily mean anything to the overall situation, just wanted to chime in.

**Holland87** · 5 February 2010, 4:46 pm

QT disabled the ability to deposit via MC a couple of days ago. Does this mean that they will follow suit with VISA and disable those cards also?

I know we are all in the dark somewhat about this. Just wanted to ask though.

**vinism** · 5 February 2010, 5:16 pm

Originally Posted by Holland87

QT disabled the ability to deposit via MC a couple of days ago. Does this mean that they will follow suit with VISA and disable those cards also?

I know we are all in the dark somewhat about this. Just wanted to ask though.

Michele,

It's tough to tell exactly what's going to happen next, because the world of payment processors is a pretty murky one in terms of obtaining information.

Here's what we do know (or sort of know):

MasterCard -- in the U.S. -- has found a way to block miscoded online gambling transactions. This doesn't come as a huge surprise. Credit card companies in the U.S. began voluntarily blocking coded online gambling transactions years ago. Not every financial institution that issued MasterCards and Visas participated, so you could still slip some transactions by. And online gambling companies went the miscoded route to help those with less vigiliant financial institutions.

Visa -- If you were able to deposit via Visa last month, you're still able to deposit via Visa now. An APCW auditor tested that today and made a successful deposit. The trick with Visa is, as noted above, the card had to be issued by a financial institution that wasn't already actively blocking credit card gambling transactions.

Here's what we don't know (among other things):

We don't know when Visa will follow MasterCard's lead on the blocking of miscoded online gambling transactions. As the Gooner pointed out earlier in this thread, Visa almost always follows MasterCard's lead. But as of now, Visa transactions still work.

We don't know if the payment processing industry has another trick up their sleeves regarding credit card transactions for online gambling. The payment processing industry has been remarkably resilient over the last few years, so it wouldn't surprise me if they have something planned. They've also had a fair amount of time to plan for it because the blocking of miscoded transactions was always a nightmare scenario for them.

We don't know if this is the usual pre-Super Bowl anti-gambling effort that is undertaken every year. If it is, there won't be another one to worry about until next year.

We're still trying to sort out all of the facts. And as we learn things, we'll post them here.

**Holland87** · 5 February 2010, 5:47 pm

vinism, thank you for that detailed explanation. I appreciate it very much.

At this point all we can do is sit and wait to see what may happen next, I guess. All I know is that there are a lot of freaked out players over the whole situation. Any info I can give them to help calm them, the better.

Thanks, once again!

**Leo** · 6 February 2010, 6:24 am

I still haven't found an answer to my question. Multiple sites are saying that Mastercard payments are no longer possible, and they have not said that policy applies only to payments from the USA, apparently it's a complete stop on all Mastercard payments worldwide. If this current situation is due to US law, then why would sites stop taking Mastercard payments from non-US citizens?

**Vrindavan** · 6 February 2010, 8:11 am

>> Not every financial institution

better to have a list of who's who for Visa and MC then

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