Bank of Montreal online gambling

How To Gamble Online With A BMO Account

BMO Bank of Montreal (Banque de Montréal or simply BMO) is a multinational financial services company and investment bank formed over 200 years ago in Montreal, Quebec.

While many other financial institutions in the country have begun making it as difficult as possible for players to transact business with international casinos, the situation at BMO Bank of Montreal is currently hit and miss.

Some people are able to fund offshore casino accounts using a BMO issued Visa card and others are finding their transactions declined. From what we’ve gathered by scouring the forums and testing the waters ourselves is that multiple small deposits into several overseas casinos each week is the most likely way to get your account scrutinized and transactions blocked.

Once or twice a week deposits to a single favorite gaming site seems to work best.

The better news is that most withdrawals via bank wire are still working like clockwork, regardless of the deposit method.

Most online casinos will let you deposit with Paysafecard, Vanilla prepaid, or any other method and still cash out your winnings by wire transfer to a BMO bank account.

Expect to pay about CA$14 on the bank end for wire transfer withdrawals.

Hit and Miss

We already take chance against the odds and house edge, so “hit and miss” is not a welcome analysis of casino banking at BMO, is it?

We have solid alternatives!

If you have been depositing and withdrawing with no problem we hope that remains the case for you. However, if you are new to online gambling or have been frustrated by the apparent lack of ease in casino banking over the last few years, we have found solutions for you.

Recommended BMO Casinos

Interac #1 BMO Banking Method

Most people are familiar with Interac, it’s just part of banking in Canada. But did you know you can use Interac Online to deposit at some casinos?

The most valuable casino banking method we see Interac offer is through a processor known as GigaDat. They handle all the comings and goings of Canadian money through the Interac e-Transfer system.

Interac e-Transfers work for deposits as well as withdrawals. The funds are processed through the GigaDat gateway, so BMO doesn’t even notice if you are paying into or receiving money from a casino – and what they don’t know won’t hurt them, right?

You can read all about Interac here or visit our deposit guide where we walk you through the process of depositing with Interac Online and Interac e-Transfer.

It’s highly unlikely that you will find a casino that will cash out as a debit refund via Interac Online, but withdrawals through e-Transfers are simple, fast, and super secure. Be sure to activate Autodeposit to save the hassle of security questions and answers.

You can visit Interac to learn all about Autodeposit. Set-up is done in three simple steps.

Other BMO Instant Banking Methods

In addition to Interac e-Transfers, BMO supports instant banking with iDebit and Instadebit.

iDebit deposits are instant and go straight from your bank account into the merchant’s account. The method is also used for withdrawals. You can read all about the method and take a quick tour on how to deposit on our iDebit Casinos page.

While iDebit deposits are instant, it may take as long as five days to see a withdrawal appear in your BMO account. The good news is that it’s never “hit and miss” – it’s always a sure thing!

Instadebit is another Canadian instant banking method very similar to Interac e-Transfers and iDebit. Like the other two already mentioned, you can also use Instadebit as a withdrawal method. Also like the other two instant banking methods, the money moves to and from your bank account through a gateway and no casino names will appear on your monthly statement.

You can set up an account “on the fly” simply by visiting the cashier section of one of our confirmed Instadebit casinos or learn how to set up an account in advance.

There’s no need to fund the account like an eWallet, so either way you prefer is fine.

The Last Canadian Online Casino eWallets Standing

While PayPal, Neteller, and Skrill (Moneybookers) have all withdrawn from the Canadian online gambling market, ecoPayz will still work with your BMO account.

Unfortunately, ecoPays discontinued their Mastercard for Canadians in 2018, so you won’t be able to visit an ABM to get your winnings. The great news is that you can still fund your ecoPayz wallet with your bank account and withdraw funds from ecoPayz to your BMO account.

Read all about the eWallet here to use your BMO account for online casino banking.

The new kid on the block is MuchBetter. It’s a mobile-based eWallet that works great for casino banking. It’s super cheap to use and works right from your phone. The system uses Interac and ACH (automated clearing house/eft) so funds transfers flow more or less under the radar.

You can read our MuchBetter Guide or visit the company website to ask specific questions.

Instant Vouchers, Pre-paid Cards, and More

Revisiting the good news above, which stated that bank wire withdrawals are still highly successful for BMO customers, we’ll visit a few alternative deposit methods.

Neosurf is a favorite for some players. The method is also supported by most online casinos in Canada. You can buy the vouchers online or at a local retailer. You can find the nearest agent here.

Any cash device including BMO debit cards will work to purchase the secure vouchers.

There is also a method available to withdraw winnings with a myNeosurf account, but it can be fairly complicated and we suggest simply requesting a bank wire to your BMO account as long as that is still a viable option.

Prepaid cards like Vanilla are also helpful in making a casino deposit. Not all gaming sites accept the cards, but several sites listed here do.

Many players simply purchase Paysafecards to deposit with before withdrawing by wire transfer to their bank accounts. Oddly enough, Paysafecards are owned by the same company that owns Netteller and Skrill – two companies that no longer allow Canadians to use their products for online gambling transactions.

You can read all about Paysafecards and online casinos here, or visit the company website to find a merchant near you.

Instant Gift Cards

Some of the trusted Canadian casinos we have listed here offer what they call “instant gift cards”. You’ll find the option listed in the cashier section when available. For some reason, they are hardly ever advertised on the website or in online media.

You can use your personal BMO debit card to purchase a gift card (for yourself, of course). The value of that virtual card is then placed in your casino account. As long as you have a way to cash out (BMO wire transfer) it can be an easy solution and you get the full value of the deposit.

There are even more methods available to use your Bank of Montreal account for online gambling. To visit our main payments page please go here.  We cover Credit and Debit Cards, eWallets, Bank Transfers, Pre-paid Cards, and Instant Banking – the big five ways to do casino business with any of the Big Five Canadian banks, or any of the more than 250 financial institutions in the country.

If you didn’t find the answer you were looking for in this article, and you have an account at one of the other big banks, the following link may be of interest to you: Canadian Banks That Allow Online Gambling

BMO Bank of Montreal Online Gambling Conclusion

BMO has not been as draconian in their prohibition of overseas casino transactions as many of the other big banks have. However, we do still see some players having trouble simply depositing with a Visa or other bank-badged debit or credit card. We find Interac eTransfer to be the most elegant solution, followed closely by iDebit and Instadebit.

For those who prefer to park their funds in an eWallet, ecoPayz is still a good alternative and MuchBetter is gaining recognition.

Last, but not least, some BMO customers may prefer to use Neosurf or Paysafecards to deposit and then withdraw to their bank account by wire transfer.

The bottom line is this…

If you are a BMO customer, you can still use your bank account to gamble online!