The role of the bank can be played differently and this the main difference between different Baccarat variations. In the version of the game known as Chemin de Fer, the position of the banker passes clockwise from player to player each time the banker loses rather than being fixed by the individual casino. The house, however, provides the banker with funds throughout the game. If you don’t want to play the role of the banker it will be automatically passed to the next player. The objective of each version of the game is the same: to reach 9. The game starts by the banker dealing four cards to each player and to himself, then each player turns his cards over and sum the value of all cards. If your total is lower than 5 you’d better draw, if the total is 5 or higher you’d better stand. Then the banker compares all the hands and the player with the closest to 9 hand is the winner and he gets paid.

The origin of Punto Banco has always been discussed. George Raft's Capri Casino in Havana is said to be the inventor of the game. The game's creator, Tommy Renzoni, stated in his book that Punto Banco, as it was called in Cuba, was brought to Las Vegas by him in the late 1950s. When this game was played in the Sands casino for the first time, the casino lost 0,000. The first version of the game appeared in Italy in the 1480s from a deck a tarot cards. The Italian word "baccarat" means "zero" because most of the cards then hold a point value of zero-tens, Jacks, Queens and Kings of all suits. According to early stories about Baccarat the game appeared long ago and it is based on Etruscan ritual of the nine gods, who prayed to a blonde virgin on their tiptoes waiting for her to throw a nine-sided die. Her fate depended on the result of the die. In the case of 8 or 9 she became a priestess. If she threw a six or seven, she would be banned from any further religious activities. If any other number was rolled she could walk into the sea.
Later, in the 1550s the game was introduced to the French public and got a new name. It was called ‘Chemin de Fer’. Some people say that it was France, where the game appeared. Then, in the 1950's, Baccarat made the long voyage from France to Argentina. It landed at the casinos of Mar del Plata, home to the South American upper echelon.