In a betting shop terminal, a betting slip is inserted into a slot, and pressed against a glass plate by means of a hinged plate. A CCD camera generates an electrical image of the betting slip, and stores it in a memory. A thermal printer generates a hard copy of the image of the betting slip, from the stored electrical image signal, together with additional information, to form a receipt for the customer. The additional information comprises a unique serial number, the amount of the stake, and optionally the time of the bet. This information is stored also in the memory, together with the electrical image. The bet can be fully entered at a later time, subsequent to the transaction, by a settler, using the terminal or an alternative terminal. Winning bets are automatically calculated from the entered information and race information received from a remote station. A plurality of such terminals intercommunicate to process shared data. A remote station can receive data relating to bets taken etc., from the terminal over a communication link.