Stake
Cryptocurrency-based online casino and sports betting platform.
| Date | Investors | Amount | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
N/A | Seed | ||
| Total Funding | 000k | ||
Stake.com is an online casino and sportsbook that operates primarily with cryptocurrency. Founded in 2017 by Ed Craven and Bijan Tehrani, the company is operated by Medium Rare NV, which holds an online casino license from Curaçao. The founders, who are from Melbourne, Australia, previously established Easygo in 2016, a company that developed games for online casinos, before co-creating Stake.com. Their background includes developing a wagering system for the online video game Runescape as teenagers.
The platform offers traditional casino games like slots, blackjack, and roulette, as well as sports betting and video streams with live dealers. A key feature is its 'Stake Originals,' a collection of in-house developed games such as Crash, Dice, and Plinko, which are provably fair through blockchain algorithms. Users primarily transact using cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, though its UK site deals only in fiat currency. The business model focuses on customer loyalty and low-profit margins. Revenue generation is significant, with the company reportedly achieving $2.6 billion in gross gaming revenue in 2022.
Stake.com has pursued an aggressive marketing strategy, forming high-profile partnerships with celebrities like rap artist Drake, sports teams such as the Stake F1 Team (formerly Sauber) and Everton Football Club, and the UFC. This strategy extended to paying content creators on Twitch to stream themselves gambling, a move that led to increased visibility and also scrutiny, resulting in Twitch banning such streams. In response, the founders launched Kick, a competing livestreaming service with looser content guidelines, which is considered a sister company to Stake.
The company operates globally with offices in Serbia, Australia, and Cyprus. It also launched a separate site, Stake.us, in 2022 for U.S. residents, where users play with virtual currency instead of real money due to US regulations.
Keywords: online casino, sports betting, cryptocurrency gambling, crypto casino, Bitcoin betting, provably fair games, live dealer games, sportsbook, blockchain gambling, Ed Craven, Bijan Tehrani, Stake Originals, Kick streaming, Formula 1 sponsorship, UFC partner, online slots, live casino, eSports betting