How to Play Punto Banco in an Online Casino

Punto Banco

Punto banco is relatively similar to baccarat, with regards to the fact that the person who is dealt 2-3 cards closest to 9 wins. However, punto banco has a few variations that you should look out for when playing in an online casino. First off, in punto banco there isn't the 'freedom' of card play that's inherent in baccarat. When certain cards are dealt, as there are rules for how both the player and banker will continue the game. When it comes to wagering, you have a choice of whether to bet on either the banker or player. Bear in mind that if you choose to bet on the banker and the banker gets closer to 9, you will have to pay commission to the house, which totals in at around 5%.

Punto Banco Glossary

Essentially, those are the rules of punto banco, but before we begin analysing gameplay, it would be useful to define the game key terms, which we will do so in our punto banco glossary.

Banker: In punto banco you can choose to either bet on the player or the banker.
Bet: This is how much you wager on the chances of either the player or banker getting a card hand closest to 9
Commission: This is how much the house taxes you on winnings, if you bet on the banker. The commission in Punto Banco is usually around 5%.
Natural: A "natural" hand in Punto Banco is achieved if the player/banker has either an 8 or 9. This is called "natural" as it's naturally strong.
Player: If you decide you don't want to bet on the banker, then your only other wagering option will be to bet on the outcome that the player will get closest to 9.
Peek: Some online casinos, such as Intercasino, offer a "peek" option, where you can literally "peek" at your own cards before they are shown to the rest of the table.
Tie: If you prefer not to bet on either the banker or the player, you can choose to bet on whether the two will "tie" and have the same value cards. This bet pays 8 to 1, but it's quite rare that both hands will have the same numerical value.

Punto Banco Rules

As mentioned earlier, punto banco follows specific play patterns that you need to know before you begin playing. Luckily for you, we have outlined those patterns so you don't have to.

The Player in Punto Banco

As a player, uncovering certain cards will dictate your gameplay, for example:

Uncovering cards to the value of 1,2,3,4 or 5 means you have to draw a card. Having a hand to the value of 6 or 7 means you stand and a hand of 8 to 9 is "natural" and no more cards are dealt to the player.

Banker

The banker's hand is dictated by the following draw rules:

Having cards to the value of 0, 1 or 2 means that the banker will draw cards, at 3-6 the banker will draw only if the player has been dealt their third and final card, if the player has drawn just 2 cards and is already at 6 then the banker will stand. However, the rules change if the banker has a strong card value such as 6-7 and the player has between 2-3, 4-5 and so on. To make these rules as simple as possible, we have compiled them into a table so you can check your cards whilst playing and easily work out the bankers next move.

Best Casino for Punto Banco

Information Icon Not many online casinos offer Punto Banco, in fact only Intercasino from our selected casinos. Fear not though, like all Cryptologic casino games, Punto Banco at Intercasino is top class: