POLi Casinos in Australia (2026): POLi Closed on 30 September 2023, So What Is the Cashier Offering?
POLi does not exist in Australia. Australia Post closed the service on 30 September 2023 after the Commonwealth Bank stopped accepting POLi payments in July of that year over the way it worked: the customer typed their internet-banking login into POLi's page so that POLi could make the transfer for them. Two years on, “POLi casino” pages still rank, several casino cashiers still carry a POLi module in their configuration, and one lobby still lists it as a payment method in its own copy. This page says what happened, what those leftovers are, and what a POLi user should use instead — with the one warning that matters: any page that asks for your bank login “to pay via POLi” in 2026 is not POLi.
What POLi was and why it closed
POLi was an Australian online bank-transfer service: at checkout you chose your bank, entered your internet-banking username and password on POLi's page, and POLi logged in on your behalf and made the transfer, so the merchant was paid in real time without a card. It was popular with casinos because it moved bank money instantly and did not involve a card network. It was unpopular with banks for the same reason it worked: sharing internet-banking credentials with a third party breaches most banks' terms and defeats their security model. In mid-July 2023 the Commonwealth Bank stopped accepting POLi payments and told customers to pay through its own NetBank instead; with the largest bank gone and acceptance falling at others, Australia Post announced that it had “made the difficult decision to close the POLi business in Australia”, and the service ended on 30 September 2023. POLi continues in New Zealand under separate ownership; nothing under that name operates in Australia.
The leftovers in casino cashiers
Two years later, the name is still in the plumbing.
| Casino | Score | Where POLi appears (19 Sep) | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Casinonic, King Billy, Ricky, FastPay | 7.3–7.8 | A POLi payment module in the cashier configuration, with deposit and cash-out field lists | A platform-level entry that was never removed; it cannot complete a transaction, because there is no POLi to talk to |
| BitStarz | 4.5 | A POLi entry in the payment-provider list in the lobby code | Same: a processor's method list that predates the closure |
| Wolf Winner | 4.8 | A “POLi info” panel in the cashier's stylesheet | Dead interface code |
| King Johnnie | 4.8 | Lobby copy listing POLi among deposit methods at two crypto exchanges it recommends | Stale text; the exchanges dropped POLi in 2023 |
| Everyone else | — | No mention | — |
None of these is a working payment method, and a page listing “POLi casinos” with a bonus code beside each name is describing 2022. If a cashier shows a POLi button today it will fail at the bank step, and if it does not fail — if a page opens asking for your internet-banking login — you are not on POLi.
What replaced it
What POLi offered was an instant bank-to-merchant transfer without a card. Australia now has that natively, and with better protection than POLi ever had.
- PayID and Osko. A push payment from your own banking app to the payee's PayID (an email, phone number or ABN). No credentials leave your bank, the transfer settles in seconds, and it is the method the casinos we review push first for Australians. The catch is the same as POLi's: a bank transfer has no chargeback, and the payee name is never the casino. PayID pokies lists who really has it in the cashier.
- Bank transfer by BSB and account. Slower (same day to two days), same finality, sometimes the withdrawal route where PayID is deposit-only.
- Debit card, directly or through Apple Pay or Google Pay. Instant, carries the card network's dispute process in principle, blocked by many issuers for gambling merchants.
- Neosurf vouchers. Cash at a newsagent, a code in the cashier, nothing touches your bank; deposit only.
- Crypto. The route most operators prefer for withdrawals, with its own conversion and verification clauses.
The security comparison is the point. POLi's model required you to give a third party the keys to your bank account. PayID's model requires nothing but your own app. Whatever else changed in Australian online gambling since 2023, the disappearance of credential-sharing payments made players safer, and a “POLi alternative” that asks for your login has missed that.
The warning
If you see this, stop
- A page that asks for your internet-banking username and password to complete a casino deposit. POLi did that; nothing legitimate does now. Close it and change your banking password.
- A “POLi” button that opens a bank-lookalike form instead of redirecting to your own bank's app or site.
- A casino review promising “instant POLi withdrawals”. POLi never paid out, and it no longer pays in.
FAQ
Can I still use POLi at online casinos in Australia?
No. Australia Post closed POLi in Australia on 30 September 2023. Any POLi entry in a casino cashier is leftover configuration and cannot complete a payment.
Why did POLi shut down?
Because it worked by logging into your internet banking with your credentials, which banks regard as a security breach. The Commonwealth Bank stopped accepting it in July 2023, acceptance fell elsewhere, and Australia Post decided the business was no longer viable.
What is the closest thing to POLi now?
PayID through Osko: an instant transfer from your own banking app, with no credentials shared. It is deposit-first at most casinos and, unlike POLi, is also used by some for withdrawals.
Is POLi still working in New Zealand?
Yes, under separate New Zealand ownership. That has no bearing on Australian banks or Australian players.
A casino cashier shows a POLi option. Is the casino a scam?
Not by itself: the entry is a stale module on a shared platform, and the same casinos carry working methods. It is a sign that the cashier's method list is not maintained, which is worth knowing before you rely on any other entry in it.
Sources and method
The closure date, ownership and the Commonwealth Bank's withdrawal are from iTnews' report of Australia Post's announcement, read 19 September 2026; the New Zealand continuation is from the same reporting. Cashier facts were read the same day from the payment-module configuration exposed by the Novatrix-platform lobbies, the lobby code of BitStarz and Wolf Winner, and the lobby copy of King Johnnie, all from an Australian IP address. We made no deposits. We earn a commission when readers sign up through links on this site; it did not decide what is written here.
No online casino is licensed in Australia. Gambling is a cost, not an income; you must be 18 or over. Free, confidential support is available 24/7 on 1800 858 858 through Gambling Help Online.