What is AstroPay?
There are many options for making deposits to online casinos, including electronic payment services, credit cards, bank transfers, and virtual currencies. Among them, electronic payment services are gaining popularity due to low fees and fast remittance speed.
Among such electronic payment services, AstroPay is attracting attention because it has a slightly different mechanism. And AstroPay can also be used at online casinos.
In this article, we will introduce basic information such as an overview of AstroPay and its advantages and disadvantages.
Overview of AstroPay
Astro Pay is an electronic payment service that began offering services in London, England in 1996. This service was originally used mainly in the United States, but in recent years it has gradually been used in Europe and Asia.
AstroPay is an electronic payment service, but unlike other services, it uses a virtual debit card.
Once you create an account with Astro Pay, you will be able to purchase something called an Astro Pay card. This Astro Pay card is available in denominations of ¥10,000, ¥30,000, ¥50,000, ¥100,000, ¥200,000, and ¥500,000, and you can purchase up to 10 cards of any amount.
When you purchase an Astro Pay card, you will receive a 16-digit virtual prepaid card number and a 3-digit CVC code by email. This is the information you will need to pay with your Astro Pay card.
By entering these two numbers, you will be able to pay with your Astro Pay card, just like you would use your credit card for online shopping. At this time, you do not need to enter your name or expiration date like you would with a credit card.
This AstroPay card cannot be topped up, so you will need to purchase a new card once it is used up. Also, AstroPay cards have an expiration date. The card is valid for 12 months, after which the amount on the card cannot be used.
The AstroPay card is a playpaid card, so you don't have to enter your personal information when making a payment.
To use Astro Pay at an online casino, you first need to deposit funds into your Astro Pay account. There are three ways to deposit money into Astro Pay: international bank transfers, bitcoin transfers, and Neteller transfers. Once you have funded your AstroPay account, you will be able to purchase AstroPay cards.
Astro Pay is mostly used for online shopping, but recently it has also become available at online casinos.
Astro Pay can be used at bet365 as of March 2020. It is quite possible that more online casinos will be introduced in the future.
AstroPay fees
AstroPay does not charge any fees. Depositing money into your AstroPay account and making deposits at online casinos are both free of charge.
Benefits of AstroPay Deposits and Withdrawals
Here are the benefits of depositing and withdrawing with AstroPay.
○ You can deposit money immediately
When using your AstroPay card to make a deposit at an online casino, simply enter the 6-digit virtual prepaid card number and the 3-digit CVC code. The deposit will be reflected instantly in your online casino account.
Since AstroPay is prepaid, there is no need to go through a bank, etc., and the advantage is that you can deposit immediately.
○ High anonymity
Astro Pay card is a prepaid card. So when you make a payment using your AstroPay card, you don't have to enter any personal information like your name or bank account. Therefore, you can safely complete your payment without worrying that your personal information will be leaked to a third party.
○ Prevents overuse
When you deposit to an online casino by credit card or bank transfer, you can deposit any amount. This can lead to you accidentally depositing a large amount and spending too much at an online casino.
However, with AstroPay, you must purchase an AstroPay card in advance before you can make a deposit at the online casino. At this time, if you dare to purchase an Astro Pay card with a small amount, you can prevent overpaying at the online casino.
For those who are addicted to online casinos and are worried about spending too much money, this is a self-limitation.
Disadvantages of AstroPay Deposits and Withdrawals
Here are the disadvantages of depositing and withdrawing AstroPay.
▲It takes time to receive the card information.
After purchasing an Astro Pay card with Astro Pay, it takes about 3 business days for the 16-digit virtual prepaid card number and the 3-digit CVC code to be sent to your email address.
Therefore, there is an inconvenience that you can not use Astro Pay immediately when you want to use it.
▲Cannot withdraw
AstroPay is an electronic payment service, but only deposits are actually available. It is not possible to withdraw to AstroPay from online casinos as it is a mechanism to deposit to online casinos using AstroPay cards.
Therefore, when using Astro Pay as a deposit method, it is necessary to prepare another electronic payment service or credit card as a withdrawal method.
▲ Few online casinos available
Astro Pay is an electronic payment service that has not yet penetrated in Australia. Therefore, the number of online casinos that can be used is limited, such as bet365.
It is not yet available at major online casinos such as Vera & John Casino, Kajitabi, LuckyNiki Casino, and William Hill Casino, which are popular in Australia.
A big disadvantage of Astro Pay is the limited number of online casinos available. Even if you use bet365, it is more convenient to use other electronic payment services if you may also use other online casinos.
▲ Astro Pay card has an expiration date
AstroPay cards have an expiration date that must be used within 12 months of purchase. Therefore, if you do not use the online casino for a while, there is a possibility that the Astro Pay card will expire without being used.
AstroPay is not a time-limited service like credit cards or other electronic payment services, so once you purchase an AstroPay card, you need to keep a close eye on it.
▲ Astro Pay deposit methods are limited
There are three methods of depositing to Astro Pay: overseas remittance at a bank, remittance with Bitcoin, and Neteller. If you don't have a Bitcoin or Neteller account, you will need to send money abroad. However, this may take up to a week.
One of the disadvantages of Astro Pay is that you can't deposit with a credit card.
How to register AstroPay
Here, we will explain how to register Astro Pay in an easy-to-understand manner. Opening an Astro Pay account is so easy that it only takes about 5 minutes.
Step 1. Enter required information
First, access the official website of Astro Pay. Then click "Register" on the right side of the screen.
Then, a registration form for entering the required information will be displayed, so enter the following information without any mistakes.
-name
-email address
-password
-Re-enter password
-Country
Then press "Register" once you have entered these information correctly.
Step 2. Email confirmation
After submitting the registration form, a confirmation email will be sent to the email address you entered.
Then, click "Complete registration" in the body of the email to complete Astro Pay registration.
Step 3. Enter details
To do a complete registration, in addition to the information you entered in step 1, register more detailed information.
-Country of Residence
-name
-Surname
-Municipality (where it says "City")
- Address after municipality (where it is written as address)
-email address
-Identification number (passport number, etc.)
-Prefectures (where the state is described)
-post code
-phone number
*Some translations of the registration form are difficult to understand. City = municipality, address = address after municipality, state = prefecture, so please be careful not to enter it incorrectly.
Once you have entered and submitted all of this information, your registration is complete.
Astro Pay does not require SMS verification. In addition, there is no need to submit identification documents, so anyone can easily open an account.