With the rise of Bitcoin and competing cryptocurrencies, there has been a wealth of new online poker sites attempting to utilize the format to provide a safe space for people to play online.
CoinPoker, which entered the market in late 2017, is one of the best offerings in the space.
CoinPoker uses a proprietary coin called CHP, which is based on Ethereum. CHP is both a full-featured virtual coin in addition to being the in-game currency for CoinPoker.
The software on CoinPoker runs using blockchain technology while the deposits and withdrawals are handled through smart contracts.
By avoiding banks altogether CoinPoker is able to process payments instantly with no fees.
The poker room itself is a lesson in minimalism with very little of the clutter that usually frequents online poker site.
Despite the pared-down experience, there are still a number of beloved features for online poker sites such as a four-color deck, hand-replayer, and customizable tables.
The industry is taking a wait-and-see approach to many of the new crypto-based online poker sites but CoinPoker is certainly one of the more compelling options.
How to register a CoinPoker account
Registering for an account on CoinPoker is shockingly simple.
Unlike other poker sites, you’ll never have to provide a credit card or banking information.
Instead, you’ll have to download the software. It is available for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS . Once downloaded, you’ll then have to provide an email address and a phone number for text SMS verification.
You can even skip the phone number and use blockchain-based Civic, which provides safe identity verification.
You’ll also have to pick out a nickname for yourself on CoinPoker. Once that’s done you’re ready to start playing.
In most cases, the entire sign-up process should take under two minutes.
CoinPoker sign-up bonuses
At the current time, CoinPoker doesn’t offer traditional sign-up bonuses.
Because CoinPoker operates using CHP there are no deposit match-type promos, but the site does offer numerous freerolls and even provides free entry to some of its bigger tournaments, such as Crypto Series of Poker (CSOP) events.
PokerScout has just such an offer for you, but you have to act before May 27. If you sign up for Coin Poker, before then, you can get a free entry in the first-ever CSOP. The tournament is a 250 CHP buy-in event with a massive guarantee of 250,000 CHP. Take advantage of the welcome offer while there is still time!
Many of CoinPoker’s tournaments offer free buy-in but a paid (CHP) rebuy. It’s an interesting format to get new players a chance to get their feet wet on the site.
CoinPoker traffic breakdown
In its existence, CoinPoker has steadily been building traffic as new players log on to try out cryptocurrency-based online poker. It’s still dwarfed by traditional online poker sites but it’s found a good place in the top 50 ranked poker sites in terms of traffic.
Currently, the site tends to peak around 120 players in a 24-hour period. Expect that number to climb as awareness about the site grows though. Tournaments are more popular than cash games thanks to the numerous freerolls that CoinPoker runs.
It should be noted that there are currently some very soft games on CoinPoker as new players mix it up with freerolls and small CHP deposits.
If the CHP coin starts to build some value, there will likely be a sudden uptick in the number of sharks attracted to the site. For now, it’s smooth sailing on CoinPoker.
CoinPoker games
You’re not going to find a lot of game variety on CoinPoker as the site currently only offers No-Limit Hold’em and Pot-Limit Omaha.
This is not exactly uncommon for crypto sites. They are trying to build player bases and NLHE and PLO are by far the most popular games.
If traffic continues to grow, it wouldn’t be surprising to see games like Omaha-8 and maybe Seven-Card Stud sneak into the rotation.
For now, however, CoinPoker is focused exclusively on Hold’em and PLO.
Interestingly at this point, CoinPoker only offers 6-max and 4-max tables, which is great for action players.
It’s an overall trend in the industry that less and less importance is being placed on the slower-paced nine and 10-handed games. It’s also useful for CoinPoker’s limited traffic at this point.
CoinPoker cash games
Cash games on CoinPoker are limited to Hold’em and PLO with traffic split pretty evenly between them.
Stakes range from .25/.50 CHP to 200/400 CHP. Obviously, the exchange varies but at the time this review was published 200/400 CHP equates to approximately $15/$30 USD, so you won’t find any extremely high stakes on the site.
It’s worth repeating that most of the traffic on CoinPoker is on the tournament side where there are numerous freerolls to play.
CoinPoker multi-table tournaments
CoinPoker offers a surprisingly robust amount of multi-table tournaments with 300+ player events starting every 15 minutes or so.
The reason behind CoinPoker’s strong tournament attendance is that many of the tournaments offer a free initial buy-in with an optional CHP re-buy.
The freeroll tournaments, which CoinPoker calls “freebuy” events, offer a couple of benefits for both players and the site. First off, they give players a chance to earn some free CHP to get started on the site. On CoinPoker’s side, the freerolls help build a player base and help distribute CHP.
In many ways, the freebuy tournaments take the place of traditional sign-up bonuses of old-school online poker sites. It’s likely that only crypto poker sites that could offer such a promotion considering the relatively low value of the coin at this point.
Other poker offerings on CoinPoker
CoinPoker doesn’t run many Sit & Go’s but it’s already got a burgeoning online poker series off the ground.
The first-ever Crypto Series of Online Poker will offer a total of 17 different events with the Main Event guaranteeing a prize pool of 2.51 million CHP. It’s an unexpected offering for a site as green as CoinPoker and will likely bring out a number of brand-new players to the site.
CoinPoker rewards program
The site doesn’t offer a traditional rewards program like VIP points or rakeback but has said that 15 percent of the total ICO (initial coin offering) will be returned to the community via promotions and bonuses.
CoinPoker deposit/withdrawal options
As with most crypto poker sites, players can bypass the bank altogether and instead utilize a cryptocurrency wallet like the official Ethereum wallet, Mist, or MyEtherWallet.com.
In addition, the following Ethereum wallets are known to be compatible with CHP:
- MetaMask (Desktop)
- Parity (Desktop)
- ImToken (iPhone)
- ImToken (Android)
Of course, as with most crypto poker sites, you’ll need to buy the actual coin on an exchange you trust. If you’ve already got Ethereum, it’s very easy, as CoinPoker will convert ETH to CHP.
You can buy virtual currency with credit cards or bank transfers depending where you reside.
Deposits
Once you have Ethereum, it’s simple to get CHP. However, if you’re wading into cyptocurrencies for the first time, then you’ll want to do a little more research into exchanges before deciding where you want to get your coin. CoinPoker officially lists the following exchanges as places you can get their coin:
- ALLCOIN
- HitBTC
- ForkDelta
- IDEX
- YObit.net
Some of the most popular exchanges include CoinBase and cex.io but the industry is always in flux and your region may decide what exchange you can use.
Withdrawals
CHP tokens are instantly transferable, so withdrawing coin is incredibly simple. You simply move the coin into your wallet and from there you are free to convert them back into ETH or Bitcoin or traditional hard currency, depending on the exchange.
CoinPoker support
CoinPoker offers email support at [email protected]. There’s also a helpful FAQ on the CoinPoker website.
Other CoinPoker promotions
CoinPoker sometimes offers entry into its big Crypto Series of Online Poker, which is nothing to sneeze at. The site is set to offer new players entry into CSOP Event #1, which offers a massive 251,000 CHIP-GTD prize pool.
Keep your eyes peeled for more CSOP free entries in the future.
Conclusion
For years online poker has struggled with making games easily accessible and safe for players around the world.
CoinPoker is an intriguing entry that just might solve some of the inherent problems of the market. Cryptocurrency and poker seem like a match made in heaven but there’s no telling whether CoinPoker or any of its crypto will be successful.
At the end of the day, it’s all about making online poker easier to play and CoinPoker is a nice step in that direction.