If you have watched a slot stream on YouTube or Kick in the last three years, you have almost certainly seen the Stake logo. That is the first thing to understand about the brand: most Indian players meet it through a streamer’s screen or a Premier League shirt, not through a friend’s recommendation or a search for rupee payments. This page explains what Stake actually is, where it is genuinely ahead, and why some players end up looking for something built differently.
Who is behind Stake
Stake was founded in 2017 by Ed Craven and Bijan Tehrani, two Australians who had already set up Easygo, a game development company, a year earlier. The casino is run by Medium Rare N.V., a company incorporated in Curaçao, and the main site operates under a Curaçao licence. Over the last few years the group has also bought or launched separately licensed sites in Colombia, Italy, Peru, Brazil and Denmark, which tells you the company is chasing local licences market by market rather than relying on one global site.
The sponsorship record is where the name recognition comes from: official betting partner of the UFC from 2022, title sponsor of the Sauber Formula One team for the 2024 and 2025 seasons, and front-of-shirt sponsor of Everton from 2022, moving to the sleeve from the 2026–27 season. None of those deals were aimed at India specifically, but cricket fans who also follow English football see the logo every weekend.
How Stake is built
Three things set Stake apart from a conventional online casino. First, the cashier on the main site is crypto-first: you fund the account with coins such as Bitcoin, Ethereum or a dollar stablecoin, and balances are shown in crypto or a converted display currency. Second, it has its own catalogue of in-house titles, the “Stake Originals” (dice, crash, Plinko, Mines and similar), which sit alongside the usual third-party slots and live tables. Third, it runs a full sportsbook with cricket markets, so a single account covers both an IPL fixture and a blackjack table.
For an Indian player the crypto point matters more than anything else on this list. If you already hold USDT on an exchange and know how to move it, a crypto cashier is quick and predictable. If you have never bought a stablecoin, the first deposit means opening an exchange account, completing KYC there, buying, then sending to a wallet address. That is four steps before you place a bet, and a wrong network choice on the transfer can lose the coins entirely. Our crypto casino guide walks through that route step by step.
Where Stake is stronger
It would be dishonest to write a Stake page without saying this plainly: on several points Stake is ahead of the five brands we rank.
- Scale. Public reporting puts Stake’s 2024 revenue at around 4.7 billion US dollars. Size of that order buys liquidity, a very deep sportsbook and the ability to take large stakes that smaller operators cap.
- In-house games. The Originals are Stake’s own, with transparent “provably fair” mechanics that crypto players value. You will not find the identical versions elsewhere.
- Crypto fluency. If your money already lives in crypto, Stake’s cashier was designed around you, not adapted for you.
- Content and community. Streams, races and a long-running VIP scheme give regular players a sense of an ongoing event rather than a one-off bonus.
Why Indian players look for an alternative
The searches we see around the brand name tell the story: “Stake India deposit”, “Stake INR”, “Stake without crypto”. The common thread is a player who likes the look of the lobby but does not want the whole experience to hang on a coin transfer. A second group is simply after a classic welcome match with a code, which is not the way Stake has built its promotions, since its hook is ongoing races and VIP rewards rather than one large first-deposit offer. A third group plays mostly on a mid-range Android phone over 4G and wants a lighter lobby with live tables at the front.
There is also a practical point about availability. Stake publishes a list of restricted countries in its terms, and the list changes. We have not verified how the main site treats Indian users since the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act came into force on 1 May 2026, and neither should you assume anything: read the current terms before you deposit anywhere, and read our legal guide for the Indian side.
Matching Stake’s strengths with our five
| If Stake appeals to you because of… | Look at | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Crash, Plinko, Mines style games | ZeSlots | A slot-led lobby with instant-win and crash titles; see our crash games page |
| A sportsbook next to the casino | YourWin24 | Cricket markets and casino on one wallet, code YOUR250 for the casino side |
| Live tables | Cas2Bet | Dealers on the front page rather than behind the slots |
| The biggest starting balance | CasinoWinner | 300% first-deposit match with WIN300 |
| Short, readable bonus terms | CasinoPurple | 100% with PURPLE100 and lighter wagering |
All five accept crypto as well as card deposits, so a player who already uses coins loses nothing by switching, while a player who does not own any is not forced to learn. On a phone, every one of them has an iOS and Android app you install straight from the casino’s site, no store involved; the steps are on our casino apps page.
Welcome offers at the five we test
#1 CasinoWinner
★★★★★ 4.7/5 · welcome match 300% · code WIN300
If the reason you looked at Stake was to stretch a bankroll, a 300% match triples the first deposit. Plan for the wagering that comes with it.
#2 ZeSlots
★★★★★ 4.6/5 · welcome match 250% · code ZESLOTS250
Closest to the Originals feel: a huge slot and instant-game shelf you can filter by studio.
#3 YourWin24
★★★★★ 4.6/5 · welcome match 250% · code YOUR250
The one to pick if the sportsbook was the draw. Cricket and casino share one balance.
#4 CasinoPurple
★★★★☆ 4.5/5 · welcome match 100% · code PURPLE100
For players who read terms first. Smaller match, faster to clear.
#5 Cas2Bet
★★★★☆ 4.5/5 · welcome match 100% · code CAS100
For people who scrolled past the Originals straight to the live dealers.
Our honest summary
Stake is a serious, well-capitalised operator with products nobody else has, and if you are already comfortable with crypto and like its own games, you know what you are getting. The five we rank answer a different brief: a conventional welcome match with a code, a lighter lobby on a phone, and a cashier that does not require you to buy coins first. Try one with the minimum deposit, withdraw once, and judge on that rather than on a shirt sponsor.
Frequently asked questions
Who owns Stake?
Stake was founded in 2017 by Ed Craven and Bijan Tehrani and is operated by Medium Rare N.V., a Curaçao company. The founders had set up the game studio Easygo in 2016.
Can I deposit rupees at Stake?
The main site is built around crypto deposits. Check Stake’s current cashier and terms yourself; we have not tested it and availability rules change.
What are Stake Originals?
Stake’s in-house games such as dice, crash, Plinko and Mines. Similar game types exist elsewhere, but these exact versions are Stake’s own.
Is there an alternative to Stake with a welcome code?
Yes. Among the five we test, CasinoWinner offers 300% with WIN300 and ZeSlots 250% with ZESLOTS250; all five take card and crypto deposits.
Why is Stake so well known in India?
Mostly through streaming and global sports sponsorship, including Everton and the UFC, rather than India-specific advertising.