A ban on using credit cards for gambling purposes is set to come into effect in the UK on 14 April. The news announced this week has prompted some people to ask whether Curve will render the ban effectively useless. Because Curve gives you the ability to combine multiple debit and credit cards on one debit card, some people have suggested on social media that you’ll be able to dodge the ban by disguising your credit card with Curve. 

Simple answer – not true. Curve already blocks gambling transactions on debit and credit cards. We are a responsible company and fully support the efforts of the commission and the government to tackle problem gambling. 

How Will The Ban Work?

Every transaction you make has a Merchant Category Code, or MCC. An MCC basically identifies what sort of thing you’re buying. So for example, if I see you’ve made a transaction with the MCC:  0742, I might ask if you’re dog’s doing better because that’s the MCC for veterinary services. If that MCC is 7995 however, the transaction will not go through on a credit card because that is the code for betting services, including lottery tickets, casino gaming chips, off-track betting, and wagers at race tracks.