Should more banks be limiting gambling with debit cards?
How gambling makes credit card debt worse Should credit cards be banned for all gambling? With this in mind, has compiled a list of banks and credit card companies that either ban gambling or allow customers to block it themselves, to help people maybe manage their gambling a little bit better. A 2017 Bank Australia survey found 76% of Australians think banks bear some responsibility to minimise gambling harm using their cards, with credit cards being the biggest reason.
Gambling is very accessible in Australia, and it costs the economy billions each year. The COVID-19 pandemic didn’t help, with poker machine profits surging by more than $2 billion in New South Wales alone from June to November 2020. Meanwhile, Queensland Treasury stats report Australians collectively bet around $250 billion (with a b) each year and lose almost $25 billion. Australians lose more money to gambling in the world than anyone else, throwing away over $US900 per capita each year according to a 2017 study.
