Punto Banco

Punto Banco is technically a variation of the game of Baccarat, but when you play online Baccarat you are usually playing Punto Banco without realising it. The basic rules of Punto Banco are much the same as in the original Baccarat game, but there are some slight differences concerning execution and presentation.

The first difference between Punto Banco and Baccarat is that the house always acts as the banker in Punto Banco. When playing online baccarat it could be said that the house acts as the banker anyway, so in this respect online Baccarat is Punto Banco.

Another difference between Punto Banco and Baccarat is that cards are always dealt face-up in Punto Banco, but if you were to play Baccarat offline this would not be the case.

As far as presentation is concerned, in Punto Banco the terms used in the game are Punto for the bet on the Player, Banco for the bet on the Banker and Egalite for the bet on the tie.

When you take all of the above into consideration, you should see that in all but presentation, most online baccarat games are in fact Punto Banco games. That said, some online casinos (for example, InterCasino) do offer separate Baccarat and Punto Banco tables so that players can enjoy the Punto Banco style of presentation if they choose to do so.

As far as the majority of online casino players are concerned, the distinction between Baccarat and Punto Banco is so small as to be irrelevant, but connoisseurs of offline baccarat will no doubt appreciate the subtle differences we have highlighted here. 

In terms of actually playing Punto Banco, almost any strategy that is aimed at Baccarat players can be used in exactly the same way. For example, if you would like to adopt a progressive staking strategy when playing Punto Banco then these Baccarat Progressions will serve you just as well as any so-called Punto Banco strategies.

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