What is Closed-Loop Withdrawal?

A closed-loop withdrawal, sometimes called the same-method or return-to-source rule, means money can only be paid back to the payment instrument it arrived from. Deposit by card and the first portion of any withdrawal returns to that card; deposit by e-wallet and the wallet is refunded first. Only once the deposited amount has been returned can profit be released, often to a bank account. The rule exists for anti-money-laundering and fraud reasons: it stops a gambling account being used to move funds between unrelated payment instruments or third parties. Practical effects for players include slower payouts when several methods were used, problems when a card has expired or a wallet was closed, and rejected withdrawals to any name that does not match the registered account holder.