Betdaq: The Other Exchange

Now that I'd got my Betfair balance up a bit, I decided to have a go at the Betdaq matched bet.  The beauty about this one is that the profit can be locked out after just one bet, as the offer is a no-lose.  I'm going about this slightly differently, because of the lure of Quidco.  I'll explain.

Quidco offer £20 cashback to all new accounts at Betdaq, where you deposit and risk at least £30.  The Betdaq no-lose offer is subject to a maximum bet of £20.  If I were to stake £20 and lose my first bet, I would receive a £20 free bet and no cashback.  However, if I stake £30 and lose the first bet, I would receive a £20 free bet plus £20 quidco cashback - in essence I've lost £10 of my stake but gained £20 from Quidco, so a net gain of £10.  Confused?

Thanks to Quidco and matched betting, I'm locking in a minimum of £20 profit, from a £30 stake.  Normally in matched betting, the aim is to lose at the bookie and win at the exchange.  That way your Betfair balance rises which means you can avoid depositing large sums of money out of your bank account to cover any liabilites.  In this instance, it would be preferable to win the first bet at the bookies (Betdaq) as my stake is larger than the free bet should it lose.  Therefore I won't be rushing this offer - my first bet will have to be on something I think has a very realistic chance of winning.

Another benefit of doing this now is that Betdaq is running a reduced commission until the end of March - it will take just 2.5% of per-book profits, instead of the usual 5%.