Bitcoin at Bombet: read the legal note before the wallet address
Bitcoin turns up in many betting cashiers, and some Kenyan players like the idea of moving money without a bank or a mobile wallet in between. Before the mechanics, though, there is a question this page has to put first: where does Bitcoin stand in Kenya's betting law? After that we explain how a Bitcoin deposit and withdrawal works, what confirmations and network fees are, and why a coin's price can change the value of a payout while it waits.
The set of methods and the limits depend on your account — check in the cashier. We have not confirmed that Bombet offers Bitcoin to Kenyan accounts, and we quote no minimums, fees or processing times.
Bitcoin and the Gambling Control Act
Section 73(4) of the Gambling Control Act, 2025 lists how a licensee may receive a player's money: debit card, electronic funds transfer, mobile money transfer, cash deposit, or another method approved by the Authority. Bitcoin is not one of the named channels. A licensed operator could accept it only if the Authority has approved it as a method — and that is something a player can reasonably ask about. A cashier that takes nothing but crypto from Kenyan players is a sign to look harder at the licence before depositing, using the steps on our payments overview.
How a Bitcoin deposit works
- Choose Bitcoin in the deposit tab, if it is listed. The cashier generates a deposit address, often with a QR code.
- From your own wallet, send the amount to that address on the Bitcoin network. Check the network and the address before confirming.
- The deposit shows as pending until the number of confirmations the operator requires has been reached; then the balance updates.
- Keep the transaction ID (hash) until the balance is confirmed — support traces a crypto deposit by that ID.
Network fees and waiting time
Every Bitcoin transaction pays a fee to the network, not to the betting site, and the size of that fee affects how quickly miners include the transaction. When the network is busy, a cheap transaction can sit unconfirmed for a long time. Your wallet usually lets you pick a fee level; for a deposit you want credited before a match starts, the cheapest setting is a false economy.
Price movement while money is in transit
Bitcoin's value in shillings changes constantly. If your betting balance is kept in KES, your coins are converted at the moment the deposit is credited, and a withdrawal is converted back when it is processed. Between request and arrival the shilling value of the same coins can rise or fall. That is a real cost or gain that has nothing to do with your bets, and it is the main reason a cautious bettor keeps betting money in shillings.
Withdrawing in Bitcoin
A crypto payout is requested in the cashier with your own wallet address. Verification still applies: the operator has to confirm your age before paying a prize (s.70(6)), usually with a national ID card or passport, so a crypto route is not a way around identity checks. The Act's two-day rule for crediting a monetary win (s.70(1)) concerns your betting balance; the time a Bitcoin withdrawal takes afterwards depends on the operator's review and on the network.
Tax and records
A 5% excise duty applies to the amount credited to a betting or gaming wallet and is collected by the operator, whatever the payment route. Whether further tax is withheld on withdrawals or winnings is a point on which official Kenyan sources currently disagree, so we do not quote a rate; check the cashier and the Kenya Revenue Authority's own guidance. Keep a record of every transaction ID, date and shilling value — with crypto, nobody else will keep it for you.
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