The world has evolved immensely since the inception of network sharing technology. There were days when scientists had to physically visit the place where all the machines were engaged in computation. Can you Imagine that? Feels like some ancient time. However, all this advancement occurred within a century of human innovation.

From the ARPANET to today’s blockchain and crypto, the arrival of ‘www’ completely reshaped the landscape into a big digital giant. 

In this virtual world of interesting things, the gaming Industry is gaining its currency, and to circulate this currency, it requires payment gateways to manage and support its growing empire.

All of the in-game purchases, like in-game currency, buying special features for more immersive play, or upgrading the character or items to sharpen the performance. Unlike gambling or earning-based games, these transactions permit the player to up their online gaming experience with the game itself, instead of generating profit.

For this to sustain, a secure payment gateway is a must!

Gaming Market Share

• The Global Gaming Market is US $241.1 bn.
• Projected to grow at 8.76%.
• Half of the gaming revenue is derived from mobile devices, due to higher influxes.
• Over 3 Billion users worldwide.

Anyone, or any enterprise wanting to explore this industry, will definitely see the need for the gaming payment gateway, for their monetary infrastructure to run the platform smoothly. 

What are Payment Gateways?

This is a Technology built for monetary transactions, mostly via debit/credit cards. It links the source i.e., customer’s payment which is to be done, with the terminal, i.e., merchant who accepts the payment made by the customer. These are similar to the Point of Sale (PoS) at the retail stores, facilitating the processing of transactions, but happens mostly virtually. 

What are the 5 best Payment Gateways for Online Gaming?

1. Skrill
2. Paysafe
3. Worldpay
4. Adyen
5. Neteller

Technologies used for the Payment Gateways for gaming?

Here we are throwing light on the technologies used for the payment gateways for gaming:

• Encryption: Think of encryption as a digital lock on your data. Protocols such as SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) and TLS (Transport Layer Security) act like this lock, safeguarding sensitive information from unauthorized access.
• Tokenization: What this does is it replaces sensitive payment information with a unique identifier (token), that is entered during the transaction. Here, data is not stored, which prevents data breaches. 
• APIs (Application Programming Interfaces): The merging guru, as we like to call them. These take all the burden for integrating the payment gateways into the websites, mobile applications, or PoS systems, the channel of communication between the source and the terminal point. 
• Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS): Pretty Crucial! It defines the standards for storing and handling of sensitive data; by establishing standards for secure network architecture, encryption, access control, and regular security testing.
• Fraud Detection and Prevention Algorithm: Using algorithms to detect any fraudulent activity; by monitoring the transactions  in real time, employing machine learning tools and pattern recognition to spot any suspicious activity. 
• Payment Protocols: Gateways support various payment protocols such as credit/debit card transactions (Visa, Mastercard, American Express, etc.), e-wallet payments (PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay), bank transfers (ACH, SEPA), and alternative payment methods (Alipay, WeChat Pay).
• Cloud Infrastructure: Used to improve the scalability, reliability, and performance. Cloud-based solutions can handle fluctuations in transaction volumes and provide high availability.

Payment Gateway Infrastructure

Factors to keep in mind while choosing the gaming payment gateway?

1. Fees & Pricing: Compare transaction fees, setup costs, and currency conversion fees to optimize profit margins.
2. Security Features: Making sure to Include robust encryption, PCI DSS compliance, and advanced fraud detection features to protect transactions. 
3. Ease of Integration and Compatibility: Choosing gateways with well-documented APIs and SDKs that easily merge with your gaming platform.
4. Customer Support: Opt for providers offering 24/7 support with quick response times to resolve issues promptly. This is the backbone, which keeps the skeleton in place. 
5. Currencies Permit: Select gateways supporting multiple currencies to cater to a global player base and minimize conversion costs.
6. Geographical Coverage: Ensure the gateway supports regions where your players reside, offering local payment methods for higher conversion rates.
7. Transaction Limits: Verify if the gateway supports transaction volumes typical for your gaming platform, especially for microtransactions.
8. Onboarding Timeline: Evaluate the time taken for setup and activation to minimize downtime and start processing payments swiftly.
9. Settlement Duration: Consider gateways offering fast settlement times to improve cash flow and operational efficiency.
10. Reputation and Reliability: Research provider reputation, reliability, and reviews from other gaming businesses for trustworthiness.
11. Reporting and Analytics: Choose gateways providing comprehensive reporting tools to monitor transactions, analyze trends, and optimize financial strategies.

5 best Payment Gateways for Online Gaming

Let’s discuss 5 cheapest payment gateways for online gaming now (randomly arranged)

1. Skrill

Features:

• Offers a digital wallet that enables users to send and receive money globally.
• Manage funds in over 40 currencies, and make online purchases securely.
• It supports prepaid Mastercard integration, cryptocurrency trading, loyalty rewards, and facilitates payments across various online platforms and services.

Pricing:

• Free Transactions: 1) Paying a merchant directly from your Skrill wallet. 2) Receive money from your Skrill account. 3) Sending money to an international bank account with Skrill Money Transfer 
• Standard Transaction Fee is typically around 1.45% – 5.50% of the transfer amount.
• Currency Conversion: Fees may range from 3.99% to 4.99% for converting funds between currencies.
• No service fee applies as long as you log in or make a transaction at least once every 6 months.

Documentations Required:

• Must register for a Skrill Business account and complete a verification process.
• Business registration details.
• Identification documents for key personnel.
• Compliance with Skrill’s regulatory and security standards for financial services.

2. Paysafe

Features:

• Offers a digital wallet (Neteller and Skrill) facilitating global money transfers.
• Supports prepaid Mastercard integration, cryptocurrency trading, and loyalty rewards.
• Enables secure online purchases and payments across various platforms.

Pricing:

• Free transactions: Paying merchants directly, receiving money, and using Skrill Money Transfer.
• Transaction fees typically range from 1.45% to 5.50%.
• Currency conversion fees vary from 3.99% to 4.99%.
• No service fee with activity at least once every 6 months.

Documentations Required:

• Register for a PaySafe Business account and complete verification.
• Provide business registration details.
• Submit identification documents for key personnel.
• Comply with PaySafe’s regulatory and security standards.

3. Worldpay

Features:

• Payment Methods: Supports all major credit and debit cards, mobile payments, and digital wallets. 
• Security: PCI-DSS compliance, data encryption, and fraud protection measures.
• Integration Options: Provides APIs and pre-built plugins for eCommerce platforms.
• Customer Support: Available via phone, email, and online help center (not 24/7).
• Processes transactions in over 126 currencies, facilitating international sales.

PricingSetup Fee: 

• No initial cost to set up an account.
• Monthly Fee: Variable, based on the package chosen (some packages may have a minimum monthly fee).
• Typically includes interchange fees (averaging around 1.5% to 3%) plus a processing fee (around $0.10 to $0.30 per transaction).
• Currency Conversion Fee: 2.75% for currency conversion.

Documentations Required:

• Register for a Worldpay merchant account and complete verification.
• Provide business registration details.
• Submit identification documents for key personnel.
• Compliance with Worldpay’s regulatory and security standards for financial transactions.

4. Adyen

Features:

• Supports payments in 35 countries and payouts in 15 currencies
• Offers a wide range of payment methods including credit/debit cards, digital wallets, and regional options
• Provides split payments for commissions and fees
• Allows delayed payouts
• Implements advanced security and fraud prevention tools
• Complies with regulations like PSD2 SCA, KYC, AML, and data privacy laws

Pricing:

• Transaction fees vary depending on the payment method and transaction volume.
• Includes a processing fee typically ranging from 0.5% to 1% per transaction, with additional fees for certain payment methods and regions.
• Handles annual payment volumes exceeding €350 billion (as of the latest fiscal year).

Documentations Required:

• Register for an Adyen merchant account and complete verification.
• Provide business registration details.
• Submit identification documents for key personnel.
• Adhere to Adyen’s compliance standards for financial transactions and security.

5. Neteller

Features:

• Supports payments in over 200 countries and 15 languages
• Offers 100+ payment options with a single integration
• Supports transactions in over 20 currencies and provides prepaid Mastercard integration for convenient payments.
• Facilitates cryptocurrency trading, loyalty rewards, and secure online purchases.
• Implements robust security measures and complies with regulations

Pricing:

• Free transactions: Sending money to merchants, receiving money, and internal transfers between Neteller accounts.
• Transaction fees typically range from 1.45% to 5.50% for deposits and withdrawals.
• Currency conversion fees may apply, ranging from 3.99% to 4.99% for converting funds between currencies.

Documentations Required:

• Register for a Neteller account and complete verification.
• Provide personal identification documents such as a government-issued ID (passport, driver’s license).
• Compliance with Neteller’s regulatory and security standards for financial transactions.

Feature Comparison for these Payment Gateways:

Why choose ScaleupAlly for your Payment Gateway Integration?

If you are confused between what online payment gateway to choose, remember to evaluate the features, pricing, and compatibility with your current systems before making a decision.

With the right payment gateway, you will be enhancing the reputation and reliability of your gaming product in the market, which can provide your customers with a seamless and secure payment experience while keeping your costs in check.

At ScaleupAlly, we own the expertise in finding the perfect online gaming payment gateway solutions for your business. Contact us now to discover how we can help you choose a cost-effective gateway that aligns with your gaming adventure.

Wrapping Up

Online gaming payment gateways are simultaneously refining as we go along this technological journey, with AI arriving at our doorways, knocking with exciting opportunities, it is yet to be seen how the technological advancement of Artificial Intelligence be put to good use in online payment gateways.

For now, AI is evening out the repeated processes by automating them, recognising patterns & enabling the extraction of key fields from invoices & payment documentations using OCR (Optical Character Recognition) & NLP (Natural language processing).

As online payments rise, technology will address these needs, with more efficient and sophisticated systems.