First-Time Depositor (FTD)
An FTD is a player who has made their first real-money deposit — the standard unit of acquisition that affiliate deals and marketing budgets are priced in.
What it means
A First-Time Depositor is a registered player who has put real money into their account for the first time. It's the moment a lead becomes a customer, and it's the event most CPA deals pay out on. Registrations are cheap and easy to inflate; deposits are the first signal of genuine intent, which is why FTD — not sign-ups — is the currency of affiliate contracts.
Why it matters for operators
FTD count is the top of the revenue funnel, but on its own it says nothing about quality. A traffic source can deliver hundreds of FTDs who deposit the minimum, clear a bonus and never return — expensive noise. Serious programmes read FTD together with lifetime value and churn by source, and structure affiliate deals (baseline deposit amounts, wagering activity clauses) so a payable FTD actually resembles a customer.
Example
An affiliate deal pays 250 per FTD with a 20 minimum deposit. Without a wagering clause, a fraud ring can register accounts, deposit 20, wager once and trigger payouts — which is why most contracts define an FTD as deposit plus qualifying activity.