A betting bank is a set amount of money that a punter puts aside to exclusively use for gambling. There are no set rules as to how much you should start with, except that it should only be what you can afford to lose. If you can only afford to lose £10 a month, start with that and see how you go. Don’t compare your betting bank size to others as it’s not a competition and should never be so.
A lot of punters, especially those who aren’t looking to take their betting too seriously, will simply use dip into their overall finances to fund any gambling they do. This might work for the average punter who places the odd bet for fun but that’s not the case for anyone looking to take their betting to the next level or those who are following a tipster.
Having a betting bank is vital for any serious gambler and it is recommended that every Betting Gods member should have one.
How to Setup a Betting Bank
Setting up a betting bank is easy, but there are a few factors to take into account:
First of all, you need to decide how much to have in your gambling fund. It should be a figure that doesn’t affect your overall finances, meaning that you will still be able to pay the bills at the end of the month.
Once you have decided how much is in your betting bank, you need to work out a proper strategy. If you don’t follow a tipster then you need to decide what risk factor to apply to your betting bank. How much of your bank do you want to risk per point that you bet? Let’s assume you have £500 and you only want to risk £2.50 on each bet (assuming 1pt level bets). You need to take your £500 and divide by £2.50. From this, you’ll get 200pts which is the size of your bank.
At Betting Gods, and with most tipsters, the tipster will recommend a starting bank value based on their betting strategy, the risk, the losing runs and more. These starting banks can range from 50pts through to 500pts. When following a tipster, it is vital that you follow their betting bank advice as they know their service better than anyone.
If you follow multiple tipsters then it is a good idea to get a spreadsheet set up with multiple betting banks. This is so that you can carefully track the progress each individual tipster is making for you.
How to Grow Your Betting Bank
One of the best ways to grow your betting bank is to increase your stakes as your profits begin to accumulate. This comes down to personal preference but we recommend recalculating the value of 1pt in your betting bank every 3 or 6 months.
Let’s assume you’re following Quentin Franks Racing and after 3 months you have grown a 100pt starting bank of £500 to £830. After the first 3 months, we would recommend dividing your new betting bank balance by 100pt to get the new value of 1pt, in this case, an increase from £5.00 to £8.30 per point.
Over the 3 months that follow, you hit another 3 average months but this time your £830 bank increase to just under £1400.
The same can be applied to when you’re losing to further protect your bank. If after 3 months your bank has decreased then recalculate the value of 1pt and continue from there.
This does come down to personal preference with some punters preferring to recalculate monthly and others doing it bi-annually.
How to Withdraw from Your Betting Bank
Ultimately, you’re betting to make money, right? Well, there’s no point in growing your betting bank if you’re never going to reap the rewards so you should always try and withdraw a little from your bank every so often.
We recommend setting a target in mind: Do you want to double your bank? Do you want to see it increase by £300? Whatever the target, set it and wait for it to happen.
When it does, we recommend withdrawing a set % of your bank. Again, this comes down to personal preference. But remember when you withdraw anything from your betting bank you need to always recalculate the value of 1pt based on the new, lower value of your betting bank.
So Why Do You Need a Betting Bank?
There are several advantages to having a betting bank:
• Control Over Your Betting Finances – It’s surprising how many punters don’t know how much they bet last week, last month or this year. This is a huge worry and just goes to show how easy it is for things to get out of hand financially when betting. By implementing a betting bank and recording it carefully in a spreadsheet, you will always know how much profit/loss each of your strategies or tipsters are generating.
• Protection of Your Personal Finances – By keeping your betting money separate, you don’t run the risk of ‘accidentally’ spending money you need to pay the bills. Unfortunately, too many people rely on their betting to recoup any money they take out of their personal bank account which leads to an emotional spiral.
• Reduced Risk – With a betting bank, you have far more control over what percentage of your bank you’re putting at risk with each bet. Many casual punters will stick £10 on here, £20 on there but ultimately have no consistency. With a betting bank, you become more consistent in the amount of money you’re risking per bet and therefore reduce your risk of things getting out of hand.
Ultimately: Stay Responsible
Gambling should always be done responsibly, with an amount of money you can afford to lose. A betting bank with a ‘points per bet’ system can ensure you remain responsible when gambling.
