Has USDT Become the Currency of High-Stakes Celebrity Betting?

Has USDT Become the Currency of High-Stakes Celebrity Betting?

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Has USDT Become the Currency of High-Stakes Celebrity Betting?
  • Many crypto sportsbooks are pushing bettors toward stablecoins such as USDT.
  • The main perk of USDT is that it doesn’t bounce around in value like other cryptos.
  • Celebrity betting slips like Drake’s expose millions of followers to the crypto world.

Rapper Drake lost about $1.5 million worth of USDT by betting on Argentina winning the World Cup final against Spain, using the crypto betting site Stake. While the loss revived the internet’s long-running “Drake Curse” meme, a less-reported aspect is that stablecoins have quietly become the go-to currency for big-money sports betting around the globe. 

There are good reasons for it. In the past, most people betting online used regular cash or Bitcoin to fund their accounts. However, these days, many crypto sportsbooks are pushing bettors toward stablecoins such as USDT, whose value is pegged to the US dollar.

As such, the main perk of USDT is that it doesn’t bounce around in value like other cryptocurrencies. For instance, someone betting with Bitcoin could see their amount rise or fall considerably even before the game starts. 

Stablecoins also offer much faster settlement times compared to traditional banks. Usually, deposits or withdrawals are done in just a few minutes, while bank transfers might take days to clear, depending on where someone is in the world.

Plus, for international bettors, USDT is especially handy since it lets users skip currency exchange fees and banking restrictions.

Celebrity Betting is Helping Mainstream Crypto Adoption

Every time celebrities such as Drake post a betting slip online, millions of their followers get a peek into the world of crypto gambling. Whether intentional or not, these posts help regular people become more familiar with things like crypto wallets and blockchain payments.

Stake itself played a large role in bringing crypto gambling into the mainstream by making it easy to deposit all kinds of crypto, including Bitcoin and USDT.

Interestingly, earlier this year, Bloomberg investigated Stake and its marketing approach, focusing on the growing reliance on influencers and celebrity streamers to promote crypto gambling platforms. 

All of these points to the fact that crypto and stablecoins are playing a bigger and bigger part in the global gambling industry.

Back in June, USDT alone briefly surpassed Ether’s market capitalization, which is yet another sign that stablecoins are becoming the backbone of digital asset markets rather than simply being another crypto asset.

Related: Will Stablecoins Become the Default Payment Rail for Businesses?

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