How iGaming's CPA Partner Program Works

CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) - a fixed payment to a partner for a player's targeted action. In iGaming, this is usually the first deposit (FTD) if additional quality conditions are met. CPA is convenient for the predictability of costs for the brand and simplicity for the webmaster, but the niche belongs to YMYL: strict compliance, KYC/AML, Responsible Gaming, correct attribution and protection against fraud are required.

💡 Important: do not use promises of winnings, do not attract minors and do not bypass local restrictions. Follow the advertising rules of the sites and the legislation of your GEO.

1) Basic terms

CPA (Cost per Acquisition): fix for the target action (usually FTD).

FTD - First Time Depositor

Qualified/Approved FTD: validated FTD (KYC, minimum deposit, no fraud/duplicates).

CR (Conversion Rate): conversion of clicks → registrations/deposits.

EPC (Earnings Per Click): payout/clicks.

eCPA: actual cost of the targeted action for the advertiser (including holds/deviations).

Hold/Validation Window: Lead validation period (typically 7-30 days).

Cap: daily/weekly FTD limit by offer/GEO/source.

SubID: parameter for source/creative labels (sub1... sub5).

Hybrid/RevShare: hybrid model (part of CPA +% of GGR/Net), or net% of net revenue.

2) CPA funnel in iGaming (which counts as "activation")

1. Click on the link/promo.

2. Sign Up.

3. KYC (identity check; may not be included in the "hard" condition, but affects the app).

4. First deposit (minimum offer amount and allowed method).

5. Validation (anti-fraud, duplicates, geo, Responsible restrictions).

6. Appruv and CPA payment (or deviation/hold until clarified).

Note: a number of offers are required: phone/email confirmation, established limits (RG), minimal activity after FTD.

3) How attribution and tracking works

Links and codes: the partner receives a tracking link with the labels' sub1-sub5 '.

Cookie/fingerprint/SDK: primary binding of a click to registration.

S2S postbacks: server-to-server acknowledge event (registration/FTD/Qualified). This is the main source of truth.

Attribution window: more often 7-30 days from the moment of clicking. With repeated clicks, the last valid (Last Click) wins, unless otherwise agreed.

Postback chain: Offer → Partner/CRM → Webmaster tracker. Use'tx _ id/click _ id'and idempotency to exclude double events.

Practice for webmaster:

transfer 'click _ id' to the offer;
accept postback with'status' (reg/FTD/approved), amount, currency, 'sub1-sub5';
check with yourself and build EPC/eCPA by creativity and sources.

4) Conditions that are often "hidden" in the CPA

Min. deposit/method: some methods are not counted (e-wallet X, crypto, etc.).

KYC/AML: Deposits without KYC may not be considered "quality."

GEO/device restrictions: traffic from unauthorized countries/emulators is rejected.

Traffic Sources: prohibition of branded PPC, motivated traffic, in-app popanders, etc.

The purity of creatives: bans on "promises of winnings," fake UI, the image of minors, "instantly to everyone."

5) KPI and CPA economics (for both parties)

For the webmaster

EPC by source/creative/GEO.

CR kliki→reg→FTD (bottlenecks).

Approval Rate.

Payout Stability (delays,% deviations, disputes).

Cap Utilization (can you consistently choose a cap without a quality penalty).

For advertiser/partner

eCPA (actual FTD value after deviations).

LTV of CPA traffic cohorts (D30/D90), Payback.

Quality: CR KYC, proportion of repeated deposits, withdrawal rate (ranges), tickets/complaints, RG events.

Fraud rate:% of duplicates/bots/incentives, ban-rates of creatives.

6) Fraud and defense

Typical abuses

Motivated traffic (cashback/other deposit fee).

Duplicates/farm accounts, proxies/emulators.

Cookie stuffing, click swapping, post-back injections.

Misleading creatives (false promises).

Counter-measures

Device/IP profiles, velocity limits, block lists.

Proof-of-KYC, antibot-captcha, manual anomaly checks.

S2S logs, signatures and idempotency.

Concerted creative policy and pre-moderation.

"Yellow" segments (test cap with a short hold), increase in the cap only after stable quality.

7) Choice of offer: what to look at

GEO & license: compliance with your sources and laws.

Payout & Cap: Rate/Daily Limit/Apruva Time/Hold.

Quality of landing pages: speed, mobility, clear "bonus terms page" (vager, term, contribution of games, exceptions, max cashout, elastic GEO).

Payments and reputation: reviews, delays, controversial cases.

Allowed sources: is it possible to telegram/seo/push/ugc/influencers; branded PPC - more often prohibited.

8) Offer pages and compliance (checklist)

Responsible/18 + and links to GEO help.
One page of bonus terms: size, vager, term, games contribution, exceptions, max cashout, optional GEO.
No "win guarantees" or false deficits.
Ranges rather than "instantaneously to all": "output usually 15 min - 24 h after KYC; depends on the method."
Localization of terms and payments under GEO.
Quick KYC-FAQ and status screen.

9) Communication "webmaster ↔ partner"

Pre-moderation of creatives: text/banner templates/UGC.

Coordination of sources: list of sites, white/black-lists.

Weekly Summary: Clicks/Reg/FTD/Appruv/Deviations by Cause.

Escalation: who solves controversial cases, timing.

Kapa growth plan: what KPIs need to be completed for 2-3 weeks in a row.

10) Payments and holds

Net-7/14/30 - standard diagrams; "daily" - only for long-time partners with collateral.

Currency/exchange rate - fix in advance.

Methods - bank transfer/fintech/crypto (if legal in your jurisdiction).

Hold - protection against chargebacks/fraud; transparently write renewal triggers.

11) Matrix of traffic sources (which is usually allowed/risky)

Source	Comment
Telegram (channels/bots/WebApp)	Good under transparent conditions, Responsible and clickbait disabling.
SEO/Content	Long and stable; monitor YMYL requirements and legal.
Push/Web/App	Allowed with strict consents and frequencies; creatives are as neutral as possible.
Influencer/UGC	Only with a compliance brief and moderation.
Brand PPC	More often prohibited.
Motivated/Adult/Spam	Almost always prohibited.

12) Formulas and fast calculations

EPC = Payout/Clicks

CR (kliki→FTD) = FTD/Clicks
Approval Rate = Approved FTD
ROMI (for advertiser) on horizon N days = (LTV_N − eCPA )/eCPA

13) Frequent mistakes and how to fix them

Mismatch in labels: attribution is lost → set the naming template 'source _ campaign _ geo _ creative'.

Leading to the "main": CR → diplink breaks on LP "All conditions "/onboarding/demo.

Dirty creatives: bans/deviations → pre-moderation, safe wording.

Volume jumps: validation "turns red →" scale stepwise, warm up the source.

No feedback: repeat fraud/errors → weekly summary of reasons for deviations.

14) Mini-FAQ

Why is FTD rejected if there is a deposit?

GEO/method/amount mismatch, KYC failure, motivated traffic, duplicate, forbidden source.

Hybrid better than CPA?

Depends on the horizon. CPA - cash flow "here and now," Hybrid/RevShare - potentially higher on the long horizon, but with risk.

Does KYC need for appruv?

Often yes. Even if the offer does not directly require it, without KYC the quality is usually lower.

15) 30/60/90 day CPA launch plan

0-30 days - foundation

Select 1-2 licensed GEO and 2-3 offers.

Set up tracking: 'click _ id', S2S postbacks, idempotency.

Prepare compliant LPs/creatives (conditions page, Responsible).

Test cap: 10-30 FTD/week → CR/EPC/Approval reconciliation.

31-60 days - stabilization

Weekly deviation cause reports, source cleaning.

Stepped growth of kapa, A/B landing (conditions/demo/onboarding).

Agree on a shorter hold with stable quality.

61-90 days - scale and control

Connect a second source (for example, Telegram + SEO), distribute mouthguards.

Introduce anti-fraud signals and dashboards (Approval, eCPA, ROMI for creatives).

Consider hybrid for stable segments while retaining CPA for tests.

16) Ready-made safe wording (copy)

LP headline: "All bonus terms - on one page"

Subtitle: "Wager, Timing, Games Contribution - Example Table"

CTA: "View Terms "/" Open Demo "/" Check Output Methods"

Caption: "Terms apply 18 + Play responsibly"

Payments: "Withdrawal: usually 15 min - 24 h after KYC; depends on method"

CPA in iGaming works when there is a transparent funnel, correct attribution and quality discipline: compliant creatives, honest LPs, S2S postbacks, anti-fraud and clear rules of the app. For the webmaster, this is a predictable EPC and understandable scale, for the brand - a managed economy and sustainable LTV. Build processes on checklists, grow mouthguards gradually and make decisions on post-click and ROMI, and not just on the CPA rate - then the program will be profitable and long-lived for both parties.