Stay away from Coolbet, they stole from me

[UGOTPZD]

I just wanted to warn everyone about Coolbet. I deposited crypto from my Polymarket account and then went to withdrawal a bit later on (less than initial deposit). Coolbet insisted I show proof of ownership of the wallet the funds came from. I sent the money from my Polymarket account who uses an intermediary to send the crypto. I explained to them where the money came form and they said they only way I could cash out was by gaining control of the wallet. Obviously I can't gain access to a wallet with millions of dollars in it which I have no ownership of from a company I have no relationship with. There is no messaging about this when depositing. My account if a lifetime loser and just used to play slots and sports bet mostly.

The amount of money is small (few hundred bucks)so I just went ahead and closed my account.

Side note, this is a policy and not a regulation and they could have easily rectified the situation. I also have evidence that they waived this policy previously for someone who used a credit card and then it expired and they couldn't provide proof of ownership. The person was an employee at a certain sportsbook review website.

[SportsBettor5]

Thanks for this report! I will be adding Coolbet to my blacklist.

[Optional]

An expired credit card is very different to a third party deposit to a betting account. Which is what this is.

I do agree that for this small amount, and first time, they could/should just give you a warning and make you good. But you don't have a right to that happening.

All properly licensed bookmakers will have No Third Party Deposits clearly stated in their terms. It's the #1 rule of anti-money laundering guidelines. You can't wash money by depositing it into someone else's betting account. That used to be a major way money was laundered.

Also, just a heads up. If they are genuinely following guidelines they should also report you and send any money confiscated to the relevant jurisdictional authority. Usually you can make a claim to that authority to get it back if you want. And I think they would rule for you in this situation.


If you would like SBR to request a managerial review and suggest goodwill should be shown by Coolbet in this situation, PM me your account details, location and email address.

Or if you want to make a point, ask them where they will be sending that money and/or reporting you. Don't threaten anything, just ask and see what is said.

If they ask why, tell them that you want to exercise your right to claim that money back from the authority they send it to.

There is some chance they will revert to wanting to show goodwill just hearing those questions from you.

[Optional]

On a related note, for general forum readers who use crypto deposits.


If you have a friend who uses the same bookmaker and they send you some crypto which you deposit to that book, they "can" call that a third party deposit. Even the larger more trusted books have brought this issue up when suspicious of syndicate activity. But it is commonly used as a way to justify confiscations by more scammy crypto books.

[UGOTPZD]

I think you are being very generous to Coolbet here. I literally just sent crypto from my PolyMarket account to coolbet, at the time I had no idea they even used an intermediary. But this policy basically means they get to keep all deposits made from exchanges without even warning people. Secondly the policy is you must show proof of ownership of where the money came from. The incident I am talking about the person no longer had access to the credit card so they couldn't prove anything, it's literally an exception to the exact same policy. So my point is they can make exceptions to this rule and have done so in the past.

I didn't bother saying in my original post but I also have dozens of bank deposits to my account, so it's not like there was any sketchy activity with some one off crypto deposit with no account history.

You think it's reasonable that they just free rolling every deposit people make where they transfer money from their polymarket account?


Other sites in the past have made me cashout via the same method but I have been online gambling for 24 years and never seen such a draconian decision.

[Optional]

I think you are being very generous to Coolbet here. I literally just sent crypto from my PolyMarket account to coolbet, at the time I had no idea they even used an intermediary. But this policy basically means they get to keep all deposits made from exchanges without even warning people. Secondly the policy is you must show proof of ownership of where the money came from. The incident I am talking about the person no longer had access to the credit card so they couldn't prove anything, it's literally an exception to the exact same policy. So my point is they can make exceptions to this rule and have done so in the past.

I didn't bother saying in my original post but I also have dozens of bank deposits to my account, so it's not like there was any sketchy activity with some one off crypto deposit with no account history.

You think it's reasonable that they just free rolling every deposit people make where they transfer money from their polymarket account?


Other sites in the past have made me cashout via the same method but I have been online gambling for 24 years and never seen such a draconian decision.

I don't think you understand still.

Sending crypto from Polymarket to fund a bookmaker is a third party deposit. Its not about any intermediary processor they may or may not use. It's about who owns the wallet or bank account or card where funds originate from. And its not just a policy as you claim. It's a license condition from regulators. All regulators everywhere. Its that normal.

Have you ever seen anyone warn that problems can come up if you send directly from an exchange or other bookmaker? You should always own one of the wallets in every single transaction to ensure you always keep custody of funds.

Coolbet Terms:



And I also agreed that they could and should make an exception for you based on your description.

Not being generous to anyone. Just factual about the parts you did not understand.

Anyway, I'd say if you go back and say you now understand what was wrong with depositing that way, and ask CS to escalate your request to a manager to overlook it this time and it wont happen again, it will likely be fixed quickly. Maybe also suggest to Coolbet that you can send them a screenshot of the Polymarket withdrawal screen to prove you are named on that account.

Good luck.

[UGOTPZD]

Calling a private polymarket account which you have the keys to a third party is quite the stretch. But why don't we keep it simple because it is kind if irrelevant. If you deposited from a private wallet and lost they keys coolbet can than confiscate all of your funds. Are you okay with that?
It's not just a thing where they SHOULD make it right, it's a policy ripe for theft.

[Optional]

It's not meant to punish people like you. You are right to feel aggrieved.

But if you were a criminal involved in money laundering it would be much easier for you to understand what this is and the implications of books allowing players to do it.

I'd just stop arguing with them about what is right or wrong and get your money back. Seriously, you're dealing with a human being in there. Focus on making them want to help you and it should be solved.

[SportsBettor5]

AML/KYC is trash. Bring back the good old days.

[UGOTPZD]

I'd just stop arguing with them about what is right or wrong and get your money back. Seriously, you're dealing with a human being in there. Focus on making them want to help you and it should be solved.

You don't think I took this route already? I was told multiple times I need to gain ownership of the wallet and there was no other recourse. I asked them for a reasonable solution and they would not budge. I asked for it to be passed along to a mananger.
They told me multiple times the only solution is gaining control of jupiters wallet with millions of dollars worth of crypto in it. It's not a reasonable ask and they aren't reasonable terms and conditions.


You also didn't answer my last question though, do you think they should be able to confiscate all funds from someone if they lose their wallet keys? Because that's essentially what;s going on here.

The good news is if you work for covers or SBR they will make exceptions for you and pay you out anyways.