USDT: a dollar stablecoin, several networks and no way back
USDT, also called Tether, is a stablecoin: a crypto token designed to keep a value of one US dollar. It exists on several blockchains at once, which is convenient and also the source of the most expensive mistake people make with it. This page explains how a USDT payment to a gambling operator generally works. Whether a given operator, Optibet included, accepts USDT at all, on which networks and with which limits depends entirely on that operator — check its cashier. And because a crypto payment cannot be reversed, check the company behind the site before anything else.
The set of methods and limits depends on the operator and your account — check the cashier.
How a USDT deposit generally works
If the cashier offers USDT, it will ask you to choose a network and then show a deposit address, often with a QR code. You send USDT from your own wallet or exchange account to that address, on exactly the network the cashier named. After a number of network confirmations the operator credits your balance. Before you send, do the step no blockchain can do for you: open the site's terms, note the company name and, if you are in Latvia, find it in VID's list of licensed gambling organisers. Elsewhere, use your national regulator's register. An address has no name attached, so this is your only chance to know who receives the money.
Networks must match
USDT on Ethereum (the ERC-20 standard) and USDT on Tron (TRC-20) are the same asset on different roads, and other networks exist too. Each network has its own address format — Ethereum addresses start with “0x”, Tron addresses with “T” — and each charges its fee in its own native coin, so you may need a small amount of that coin in your wallet just to send. If you send on a network the receiving address does not support, the tokens can be lost or recoverable only with the recipient's goodwill. Check three things before every transfer: the network in your wallet, the network in the cashier and the first and last characters of the address.
Irreversibility
A confirmed blockchain transfer cannot be cancelled, charged back or recalled by any bank. That is the core difference from a card payment. If you pay the wrong address, the wrong network or the wrong company, there is usually nobody with the power to return the money. For a first payment to a new site, send a small test amount and wait until it is credited before sending more. Keep the transaction hash: it is the only proof of the payment that support can trace.
Withdrawals in USDT
Where an operator pays out in USDT, you give it a wallet address and choose a network, and the same matching rule applies in reverse. The operator's identity check still comes first — using crypto does not remove verification. If you withdraw to an exchange, that exchange may ask you about the source of the funds before letting you convert them to euro. Our page on withdrawals and identity checks covers the operator's side.
Issuer risk: a stablecoin is a promise
USDT keeps its dollar value because its issuer says each token is backed by reserves and can be redeemed. That makes the stability depend on a single company. Stablecoins have at times traded below their target value during market stress, and an issuer can freeze tokens held at specific addresses. None of this makes USDT unusable, but it means “stable” describes a design goal, not a guarantee. Do not leave more on a gaming balance or in a wallet than you are ready to lose to any of these risks.
Euro accounts and the exchange rate
If your gaming account is in euro, a deposit in a dollar-linked coin is converted at some rate on the way in and again on the way out. Even with a perfectly stable coin, the euro-dollar rate moves between the two dates, so your result in euro can differ from what the balance suggests. Note the rate on the day you deposit if you want to compare fairly later. For the general mechanics of crypto, see our crypto payments overview; for a comparison with a volatile coin, see the Bitcoin page.
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