10 Interesting Facts You Need To Know About The Banker

The Banker remains the most mysterious part of the famous game show Deal Or No Deal. Here are the most important facts you need to know about him!

Deal or No Deal was one of the most talked-about game shows of the late 2000s. It took a break for almost a decade but returned to NBC in 2018. Howie Mandel hosts this program in which contestants win money by pure dumb luck. There are 26 numbered briefcases, each manned by a model (one of them having been Meghan Markle).

One of the best parts of the show is the infamous Banker. This character was not named or seen in the show's first iteration, and the new banker is a mystery on the current show. The Banker somewhat ominously exists in an upper control room, making offers he/she hopes the contestant can't refuse. Here are ten interesting facts about this unique game show fixture, the Banker.

10 US Banker 1

The first banker from Deal or No Deal has been revealed. We always knew he was male, but after the show ended, his identity was unveiled.

Banker 1 was an actor named Peter Abbay. He was an important part of the game show's first life, but he also acted on programs like Another World, Punk'd, and House.

9 Voiceover Secret

It's very interesting to look at Peter Abbay's IMDb. A handful of Deal or No Deal episodes are listed under self credits, which is odd. More noteworthy, however, is Abbay's credit for voicing the Banker in a 2006 Deal or No Deal video game!

If a stealthy fan had seen this credit back in 2006, that would have been a dead giveaway. Video and computer games have been a pretty big part of the show's franchise, even showing up in arcades.

8 Banking 'Round the World

Some fans might know about the UK version of Deal or No Deal, but the idea for the show has become a worldwide phenomenon. The US version was not nearly the first of the show. A German game show called Die Chance deines Lebens (The Chance of a Lifetime) was the beginning.

This show was on back in 2000, and it is believed to have inspired a Dutch show which translates to "Hunt for Millions." That show added the element of opening the cases. All that to say, the show has a long and international history, and that means that there are numerous mysterious Bankers.

7 What is the Job?

Part of the Banker's job is to get the contestant to throw in the towel, accept the Banker's offer, and exit the game entirely. This is sometimes effective, sometimes not.

It is often a good litmus test for greed (or determination, depending on how you look at it). Will the contestant play it safe and take an offer from the Banker? Or will they decide to test their luck and aim for more money?

6 US Banker 2

There's a new Banker in town, but this time, it's much less of a secret. The Internet quickly knows that this is a female Banker, played by Carrie Lauren.

Her silhouette can be seen in the Banker's office, and Howie interacts with her just as he did with the old Banker. Carrie Lauren is an accomplished actress--she was on Nickelodeon's original All That, and she has been in many movies, including Magic Mike.

5 Creative Offers

The Banker really wants the contestant to call it a day. This means that some prizes are quite out-of-the-box. An example from more recent episodes involves a family who wants to go all the way and win big for a house and a car. One member of the family is a basketball player and a serious basketball fan.

The Banker makes the offer of a lifetime - a signed ball, tickets to a game, courtside access to practice--things that are extremely hard to come by for the average person. However, the cash offer accompanying these material items is only $7,000, so the contestant decides to say "no deal."

4 Competition

Obviously, the Banker's best offer can't always sway contestants. Many of them get sucked into the gamble of the gameplay. The briefcase opening can be addictive.

It's ironic that the contestants want to see low numbers in the cases they open. If they can eliminate the smaller cash prizes, that means the final case might have something pretty amazing inside.

3 Folklore

Everywhere the Banker goes, he/she becomes even more of an enigma. A case in point is a 2006 interview story from Today. To add to the whimsy of hidden identity, the writer published the story under an alias, Wendell Wittler. Wittler told the strange saga of himself interviewing the Banker.

Not surprisingly, you get to the end of the interview and Wendell says, "You're sounding more like a TV producer than a Banker." The Banker coolly replies, “Okay, to be perfectly honest, I’m not The Banker. I just work for him. You can call me The Teller.”

2 Research

It's no surprise that game shows have worked their way into a corner of television studies. Everyone wants to crack the code for the Banker. In 2008, four scholars (Post, van dem Assem, Baltussen, and Thaler) wrote a scholarly article titled "Deal or No Deal? Decision Making under Risk in a Large-Payoff Game Show."

They sum it up pretty well with this statement on the show: "Risk aversion decreases after earlier expectations have been shattered by unfavorable outcomes or surpassed by favorable outcomes." The Banker knows this and uses it to his/her advantage.

1 Evil Plan

At the end of the day, the Banker is a villain. This is in print in that Today interview, and it is evidenced on the television show. Without the Banker, Deal or No Deal would be pretty bland.

Contestants aimlessly open briefcases until they run out of high cash prizes or win big. The Banker has to shake things up and mess with the mind of each hopeful player.

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