Happistar Review
120% Welcome Bonus up to ₹10,000
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Overview
HappiStar is a bookmaker and online casino that is operated by Blackbox Group B.V., who are registered and licensed in Curacao.
Originally, HappiStar appears to have been established in the Philippines as an online casino primarily catering to customers from Asian countries. We have found information indicating that they’ve been around since 2014, though the sportsbook seems to have been a more recent addition.
Whilst still catering primarily to customers from Japan, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam (the only languages the homepage is localised in apart from English), HappiStar does welcome customers from India as well these days. This makes them a fairly recent entrant to the Indian market, which is why we are checking them out for you now.
What we liked:
- Asian bookmaker and online casino
- Accepts customers from India and deposits in INR
- Strong focus on eSports
- Convenient payment options
- Customisable sportsbook settings
- Promotions and bonuses for all sections
- 24/7 live chat
What could be improved:
- Only Curacao license available
- No live streaming
- Limited to very few countries
Safety and Security
From our research we know that HappiStar was originally licensed through the Philippine government, though there is no longer mention of this license on their homepage. Nowadays, they only refer to their Curacao license, which is certainly more widely recognised and accepted, though it isn’t the best option from a customer’s perspective.
Given that HappiStar almost exclusively caters to Asian countries, they are unlikely to obtain other gambling licenses. And whilst we would prefer to see more secure licenses, we are happy to report that we found nothing worrisome about HappiStar. They have been around for a while, generally receive positive reviews and customers seem to be satisfied.
There are some things that can definitely be improved here, but this betting site in India leaves us with the impression that things are done reasonably well here and that you get to place your bets at a secure site.
You are always welcome to test them thoroughly, of course, which we generally recommend anyway.
Betting and gambling at HappiStar
HappiStar offers a solid sportsbook that features plenty of football, cricket and tennis betting – favourites among Indian punters. The sportsbook allows you to change the settings to your liking, which includes changing the view from classic to modern or Asian. Since the classic layout is always easy to look at, we opted for that.
It means that all sports are listed on the left-hand side of the screen, offering various categories under which you can find your preferred sports to bet on. There is even a category for bet boosts, showing matches for which boosted bets are available.
Overall, there are over 25 sports listed to bet on plus a variety of eSports. We would have preferred to not see the eSports here as well because there is a separate category for eSports via the main menu anyway.
HappiStar features more sports than many other sites we have seen in recent months, but they also don’t quite match the volume of sports some of the biggest betting sites offer. We also found that they tend to offer fewer markets for individual matches, especially when it comes to pre-match betting. Further markets open up for live betting, but you may not find all the niche options you have seen elsewhere.
Still, casual punters should be satisfied with what is available here. We certainly found no real reason to complain.
Live betting is solid as well, though unfortunately live streaming is not offered, and we also didn’t really see any animations. You’ll get the latest stats of a given live match, but nothing further.
Our research also shows that margins can be quite high on some sports, especially for tennis it was a bit above average and therefore you might not get the best odds here. Overall, odds were competitive, but with low betting and winning limits, HappiStar once again proves to be aimed at casual punters rather than high rollers.
Casino Gambling
The online casino offered at HappiStar is equipped with a good suite of games from some great providers. These include NetEnt, Red Tiger, Pragmatic Play, Play’n GO, Thunderkick, Habanero and a few others. It’s not the largest library of games we have seen, especially given that even the newest and smallest betting sites sometimes partner up with dozens of providers to offer thousands of games.
That is not the case here, but we do like the providers available here since they are behind some of the best games we know.
The casino is well-sorted, and you can filter games according to various categories as well as the game providers, which is usually quite handy. Unfortunately, there is no category for jackpot games, and after some searching, we discovered no jackpot games here whatsoever. At least, none of the big progressive jackpots that NetEnt is known for and none of the smaller ones either.
There is a live casino as well, though, which is excellently equipped with games from Evolution Gaming, Ezugi and Pragmatic Play. You’ll find all your favourite games here from these providers, which also includes Andar Bahar and Teen Patti.
Welcome Offer and Promotions
Finding bonuses and promotions at HappiStar is not at all difficult. Simply click on the ‘Promotion’ link in the top menu and you are there right away.
Here you will find plenty of bonuses and promotions for all sections of the betting sites, which means you get something for the sportsbook, the casino and the live casino. That’s always great to see and means nobody will feel left out.
There are also two welcome offers available, though we are mostly interested in the sports welcome bonus. New customers can claim deposit bonuses for their first three deposits, which looks like this:
- 1st deposit gives you 120% on top and up to INR 10,000 as well as 70 free spins – there is a 15x wagering requirement for the deposit and bonus
- 2nd deposit gives you 75% on top and up to INR 10,000 – there is a 12x wagering requirement for the deposit and bonus
- 3rd deposit gives you 50% on top and again up to INR 10,000 – there is a 10x wagering requirement for the deposit and bonus
In order to fulfil the wagering requirements, bets on sports or virtual sports events are accepted. The minimum odds are set at 1.5 or higher.
Free spins are credited within 24 to 48 hours of the deposit being made and will be available only on a specified slot. The winnings from free spins must be wagered 40x on the same slot that they were initially played on.
The bonus conditions don’t mention how long the bonus is available for, so we don’t know how much time you have to meet the rollover requirements.
The casino welcome bonus is similarly structured, but you get a total of INR 80,000 across your first three deposits (if you claim the maximum) and you will receive 30 free spins with your first deposit, which are also available for a specified game.
The wagering requirements for these bonuses are only marginally higher than the ones for the sports bonus, which is somewhat strange. For the casino bonus, a maximum wagering of 16x the deposit and bonus seems quite reasonable, where it is more difficult to meet for the sports bonus.
Do be sure to read the full terms and conditions before you claim any of these bonuses.
As mentioned above, various promotions are available at HappiStar, including free bets, tournaments, reload bonuses, a cashback offer for the Winter Olympics and more along those lines.
Payment methods at HappiStar
HappiStar doesn’t have a separate banking page, which is a shame, but some information about making deposits and withdrawals are available here and there. You can access the quick link at the bottom of the homepage, which will take you to the FAQs related to making deposits and withdrawals, but the information actually available there is somewhat limited.
The bottom of the homepage also lists that available payment methods, which include Net Banking, PayTM, UPI, credit cards, crypto, iWallet, bank transfers and a few others.
Mostly, the options here are convenient for Indian customers, but we wouldn’t have minded seeing further information.
For instance, whilst we couldn’t verify this, we heard that some payment methods incur fees. If you are worried about such things, be sure to contact customer service for more details.
The only relevant withdrawal limit we have seen is the one for Net Banking, where INR 100,000 appears to be the transaction limit. Nothing further is mentioned, and no other payment methods are listed anywhere.
In any case, limits are likely to apply, so be sure to check.
Also keep in mind that the cumulative withdrawal of $500 (or the currency equivalent) will result in a KYC check. This is usually done sooner or later, but at HappiStar it will be requested as soon as your withdrawals have reached that amount. We usually recommend that you get your ID verified prior to making your first withdrawal request anyway as it saves hassle later.
Support
At HappiStar, the customer support is available 24/7 via live chat, Telegram and email. When you click on the little speech bubbles at the bottom of the page, you will be given all three options and you simply click on the one you prefer.
The support is available in the same languages the homepage, which means customers from India will have to resort to English.
Before contacting customer support, you are free to browse the FAQs as well as all the other additional information available on the homepage.
Software
The HappiStar homepage is easy to use, pleasant to look at and allows for convenient customisation options when it comes to the sportsbook view and other settings. We appreciate that as it gives you an individual experience to your liking, giving you options for a more classic view or the modern approach.
The colour scheme is certainly not boring either, though the light blue and pink highlights might not be for everyone.
HappiStar is indeed built on the BetConstruct platform, which is stable and familiar – something we certainly appreciate.
The site is fully mobile optimised, and we have had no complaints accessing the sportsbook or the casino sections via our mobile browser.
There is currently no dedicated app available, though we found that we didn’t really need one either.
Summary
HappiStar is doing a solid job at providing a decent betting experience for a wide variety of sports, a good selection of markets and providing competitive odds, though they don’t excel at anything in particular. They are just a good and average betting site, which has some flaws and some things you may appreciate, especially the customisable views and some of the promotional offers available.
We liked the smaller but well-equipped online casino, which also offers a great selection of live dealer games. The lack of progressive jackpot games is somewhat of a let-down, of course, but there are plenty of entertaining games regardless.
So, whilst not perfect, HappiStar is worth your while if they offer you exactly what you might be interested in. We have no reason not to recommend them to you, so be sure to check them out.