Russian online bookmaker PariMatch says over 80% of customers who deposit to the site using the Bitcoin cryptocurrency never actually place any wagers with the site.

Russian gambling news site BettingBusiness recently published an interview with Ivan Lyashenko, product director for Russian-licensed online betting operator PariMatch. The interview offers some insights into the role that cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are playing in Russia’s online gambling sector.

Russia’s government is firmly in the ‘nyet’ camp when it comes to allowing its licensed online bookmakers – or anyone else, for that matter – to incorporate Bitcoin as a payment processing option, so Parimatch.ru doesn’t accept Bitcoin.

But Parimatch.com, which is licensed in Curacao, does accept Bitcoin, and the site’s default language is Russian, reflecting Russian gamblers’ desire to partake in online gambling options (casino, poker, etc.) not currently available from Russian-licensed sites.