PAYMENTS FOCUS
How have various cryptocurrencies fared over the years? New technologies: Predictions, prize bonds & more Company profiles: The best of payments suppliers
The road to compliance
Within the complex world of payments, compliance and user experience can often seem an unwilling pair. Gambling Insider explores how payments suppliers can enhance the way operators approach compliant customer acquisition
EDITOR’S LETTER
In today’s society, whether it’s gambling or running a fast-food joint, user experience versus compliance is no longer a choice.
If you want your business to succeed, you must provide a first-class experience to your customer – but in the right way. You can’t cut any corners; you can’t skip any rules.
And, with gambling being one of the most regulated industries in the world, there is no getting away from that fact in this sector especially.
In the everlasting tussle between user experience and compliance, payments plays a crucial role. Operators can utilise payments suppliers now more than ever, when it comes to KYC, AML and all the vital compliance elements that can potentially obstruct a player’s journey.
That’s exactly why in the cover feature of this Payments Focus issue, we speak with experts from Paysafe, Zimpler, Grant Thornton and BetComply about just how payments providers can assist – and what their role is in the wider ecosystem.
Elsewhere within our magazine, we bring you a one-off special of Taking Stock, focusing on how the major cryptocurrencies have fared over a longer period than our usual six-month timeframe.
We also hear what panellists had to say about the latest payments trends at SBC Americas, while there are interviews with entrepreneurs who are approaching gambling and finance/payments from very new angles. These include Owen Monagan, Co-Founder and CEO of Layup, as well as Alan Vey, Co-Founder of Galactic.
Meanwhile, both Sue Page and Andrea McGeachin represent Neosurf, with the supplier providing a data feature exclusively for this Payments Focus magazine. We also include a company profile from Neosurf, ElenPay, Spayz and MiFinity – all leaders in their own right within the gaming payments landscape.
So, whether you’re reading this online or at iGB Live, we hope you enjoy all the payments-related content Gambling Insider has to offer this year.
It is fascinating to see which trends are new every summer, although certain themes – like the road to compliance – are simply non-negotiable.
TP, Editor
Julian Perry, COO, Editor in Chief
Tim Poole, Editor
06 TAKING STOCK
Gambling Insider follows the changing values of the world’s largest cryptocurrencies – excluding stablecoins – across a three-year period (Jan ‘23 - May ‘25)
10 BANKING ON CRYPTO & LATAM
Executives from Nuvei and MVB Bank convened at the SBC Summit Americas in Miami to explore the ongoing evolution of payments processing in iGaming
14 ROAD TO
COMPLIANCE
Gambling Insider explores the role of payments providers and their ability to enhance the compliance of operator partners, in a fast-changing regulatory landscape
22 TURNING INTRIGUE INTO INTEREST
Layup Co-Founder and CEO Owen Monagan speaks to Gambling Insider about combining the concepts behind sports betting with lottery and prize bonds
26 DIGGING FOR DATA
Sue Page, Neosurf Americas CEO, discusses the company’s datacentric approach to expansion into new markets and how this informed Neosurf’s launch in the US
30 PREDICTION SECURITY
Gambling Insider talks to Galactic’s Co-Founder, Alan Vey, about how blockchain is changing the game for both security and compliance in the prediction market space
Taking stock: Crypto edition
Gambling Insider tracks the value of the biggest cryptocurrencies (excluding stablecoins). Coin prices are taken across a two-and-a-half-year period, tracked on the first available day at the first recorded time in May, September and January. All values sourced from Coingecko and are in US$
• High point - 106,182 - May 2025
• Low point - 16,518.85 - Jan 2023
• Market
(as of 13.05.2025) - 2.05trn
XRP (US$)
• High point - 4,070.60 - Jan 2025
• Low point - 1,196.44 - Jan 2023
• Market cap (as of 13.05.2025) - 305.7bn
BNB (US$)
• High point - 3.31 - Jan 2025
• Low point - 0.327 - Jan 2023
• Market cap (as of 13.05.2025) - 148.6bn
• High point - 781.05 - Jan 2025
• Low point - 204.85 - Sep 2023
• Market cap (as of 13.05.2025) - 95.6bn
• High point - 286.81 - Jan 2025
• Low point - 9.74 - Jan 2023
• Market cap (as of 13.05.2025) - 90.67bn
• High point - 0.48 - Jan 2025
• Low point 0.06 - Sep 2023
• Market cap (as of 13.05.2025) - 34.1bn
• High point - 1.3 - Jan 2025
• Low point - 0.24 - Jan 2023
• Market cap (as of 13.05.2025) - 28.99bn
• High point - 0.43 - Jan 2025
• Low point - 0.05 - Jan 2023
• Market cap (as of 13.05.2025) - 25.19bn
In focus: MiFinity
A trusted payments partner for the iGaming industry
MiFinity is a well-established name in the global payments space, working closely with businesses in the iGaming sector to deliver practical, secure and efficient payment solutions. Known for its straightforward approach and strong compliance record, MiFinity supports operators with everything they need to manage highly cost-e ective transactions across borders and customer preferences.
In over 223 countries and territories, servicing over 1 million customers, the company combines international reach with local expertise. MiFinity is regulated by both the UK Financial Conduct Authority and the Malta Financial Services Authority, giving its partners con dence that all global services meet the strictest standards.
At the centre of its o ering is the MiFinity eWallet. It’s a simple and e ective way for customers to deposit and withdraw funds. The eWallet supports more than 80 local payment methods and 18 native currencies, with 21 languages available across web, mobile and in-app experiences. That makes
it easy for operators to provide a familiar and user-friendly payment journey to customers, wherever they are.
Today, over 1,000 live brands o er MiFinity as a payment option. Customers can add funds to their eWallet using various top-up methods, including MiFinity eVouchers available through a wide global network of resellers. Other customer account bene ts include free IBAN to EEA and UK, making transfers faster and more affordable.
MiFinity offers much more than just wallet services. Its PayAnyBank feature lets merchants send money directly to player or a liate bank accounts in their local currency, covering more than 130 countries. This avoids unnecessary currency exchange fees and speeds up transfers.
One of the company’s latest developments, MiFinity iFrame 2.0, gives operators more tools to improve how payments work on their platforms. For example, customers can now complete KYC checks directly within the payment process and If a card payment fails, customers can
try again or choose a different method without disruption, all features designed to retain sessions and reduce drop offs.
What also sets MiFinity apart is its Account Management support. Partners get access to a responsive team, smooth onboarding and advice on how to get the most from the platform. Whether it’s entering new markets, improving user experience, or dealing with local regulations, the focus is always on helping operators run smarter and more e ciently.
As the iGaming industry keeps growing and customer expectations rise, the need for simple, fast and reliable payments becomes even more important. MiFinity continues to adapt its products to meet these changes, continually o ering smart solutions without adding complexity.
For operators looking for a trusted payments partner with a clear understanding of the iGaming industry, MiFinity delivers the right mix of experience, innovation and hands-on support.
Payments on the road
During the SBC Summit Americas in Florida, three payments executives held a panel on the evolution of banking, new processing architectures and services
Throughout 2025, there have already been multiple examples of how the gaming industry continues to reinvent itself to meet the ongoing demands of consumers. But none may be as crucial as the direction payments processing is currently heading in, especially across the iGaming space. At the SBC Summit Americas held in Fort Lauderdale, Florida from 14-15 May, the topic was heavily discussed, especially during a panel which included Nuvei VP of Omnichannel – Americas, Andrew Crowe, and MVB Bank VP of Digital Gaming Katie Roberts.
The pair were joined by iGaming, Fantasy Sports & Sports Gambling Wallet and Fraud Consultant Mike Wrobleski, who served as the VP of Payments & Fraud at PrizePicks until September 2024. Crowe spoke specifically on the growth seen in LatAm over the first half of 2025, citing how entry into new iGaming markets can certainly come with challenges for any operator looking to build a presence within the region.
BANKING ON LATAM
“We have a strong legal and compliance focus to make sure we’re doing everything in a regulated market and according to the regulations, and then you have to do
it according to the bank’s satisfaction. Whoever the sponsor is for processing those credit and debit card transactions, it has to be to their satisfaction,” Crowe said. “And last but certainly not least, because they set some of the highest bars on this, the networks as well. The networks have their own rules about what the standards are so that we are all in compliance with federal and state and local regulations in the US.”
Crowe continued: “Now this is extending to Latin America as well, with a number of operators expanding as those markets become regulated. The same discipline and approach to each market and onboarding just as you expand to a province in Canada or an additional state in the US now pertains to Latin America.”
Roberts touched on what MVB Bank specifically looks for in collaborating with gaming operators, from both a streamlining and payments processing point of view. “We’ve been working with our gaming operators since the inception of PASPA, but a lot of what we deal with and what we focus on are good partnerships and finding the right payment processor to really enable this streamline of payments,” Roberts said.
“So while we have a lot of the card processing, we lean on our payment processors for a lot of the acquiring lift, but also handle much of the ACH side as well as any of the direct bank transfers for RTP and RFP today. We still see a lot of the banks coming into the network for it, but it’s definitely seen a big adoption for us and it’s not going away.”
Crowe also spoke on how banks view the “complexity of gaming” as high risk and are treated as such by digital payment providers such as Visa and Mastercard, or by the banks themselves. As the hesitance eventually leads to a “high barrier” for onboarding clients, the precaution has only been raised in recent months following the growth of sweepstakes casinos throughout 2025. “There’s a lot of work that goes into making sure all of the gaming activity, particularly in the US with the regulatory burden that’s in place for us, is compliant and satisfactory from the very beginning,” Crowe said.
Wrobleski was able to discuss new coding from banks that puts an automatic cancellation on internet transactions, as banks and operators have reportedly moved from a 7995 code to 7801, 7802 and 7803, which relate to online sports and gambling, lottery
Broward County Convention Center
and horseracing. If the bank chooses not to accept a digital transaction that pertains to one of the gaming types, these codes would be placed by default to notify the operator of a failure to process. “There was an education process that occurred where we had to proactively approach the banks and educate them on why it’s legal, why we can do it, why there’s a new code and how we were able to execute the change; it was kind of an evolution,” Wrobleski said.
“It was a collective effort not only from the operator’s standpoint, but from the payment processing and gateway standpoint. It was all of us trying to go out and educate the issuing banks, like Visa and Mastercard, on how it was legal, how we were operating and managing these things from a geolocation perspective, and ensuring our products were being used in a legal and acceptable fashion. That whole process took time, but it did evolve – and it’s come a long way.”
Wrobleski also explained how operators have already conducted the experiment of discovering what inquiries are most frequent among consumers, including how quickly they can withdraw funds, the length of time processing this payment takes and where the funds ultimately end up. While providing answers for players is part of the process, finding ways to retain business and ensure second or third deposits from the same user seems to be the main priority for those in the payment processing space.
“I think a lot of attention from the gaming operator’s standpoint is about acquiring
players and focusing on how to get that user to make a first or second deposit. Cost for acquisition is really high; it’s a very competitive market for retainability,” Wrobleski said. “If the experience is not great, they can simply exit out and go to some other platform. There’s so much focus given to getting that player through the journey to the point where they reach for their wallet, where sometimes enough focus isn’t given to actually asking the players what they would like to experience.”
CRYPTO-NITE
One of the other main topics of discussion for the panel was how cryptocurrency is currently a ecting the payments processing industry, mainly due to the risks some operators take when choosing to accept crypto as payment. If a player deposits $100 worth of crypto at a certain time, the payment could be worth 80% of the value by the following day, given the uctuating value of cryptocurrency over the past number of years. A way to counteract these risks, however, is the introduction of a stablecoin. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies whose value is pegged –or tied – to that of a fellow currency, commodity or nancial instrument.
“The other layer to this is there has been a lot of people who like to trade crypto, but not many like to transact in crypto. That’s why I joke that I roll my eyes when this topic has come up, but I’m going to confess that it’s starting to change a little bit now with the advent of stablecoin,” Crowe said. If that coin
is worth $1 today, it’s worth $1 tomorrow, which means there is no currency exchange risk for operators, and might start to change that level of risk factor.”
Roberts also shared her views on the evolution of crypto becoming a more acceptable form of currency within gaming, pointing to the work done by Signature Bank to help progress the offering. “I think while crypto is the fun buzzword for everyone, the bank that we can really give the flowers to obviously is what was done with Signature Bank and everything they accomplished with creating this closed loop system. But the work everyone praised them on and showed a lot of efficiencies had nothing to do with crypto. It had to do with the API and having everything in house and under one ecosystem of instant transfers,” Roberts said.
“Crypto is great, but I think we have a lot of efficiencies that are already at our fingertips within the banking industry – and I’ll hammer it all day that it’s about partnership. Finding the right partnerships, finding gaming operators that are willing to be innovative and flexible with compliance, but also finding payment processors that are gaming friendly.”
As the gaming industry continues to introduce new verticals for players every year, how users receive the funds to actually take part in these offerings may be the most crucial step in whether these gaming types evolve in a successful, but also safe and regulated, fashion. Whether it be iGaming, sweepstakes or retail forms of gambling, the need for strong payment processing solutions will forever be a constant.
From left to right: Andrew Crowe, Katie Roberts, Mike Wrobleski and moderator Tony Fontaine
In focus: Spayz.io
Payments that actually work for iGaming operators…
Payments in the iGaming world are complicated – but they shouldn’t have to be. With over a decade of expertise perfecting payment technology for gambling, betting and forex operators, Spayz.io has rapidly emerged as one of the world’s fastestgrowing payment providers, delivering stable and localised payment solutions. Spayz.io understands what businesses really need; secure transactions and seamless integration. And that’s exactly what we deliver.
YOUR TRUSTED PAYMENT PARTNER
Spayz.io is a global payment provider designed speci cally for the iGaming industry. With a growing presence across Europe, Asia, and Africa, it is at the forefront of building a more connected and e cient nancial future. By offering innovative and scalable payment solutions, we’re helping businesses navigate the complexities of global finance with ease. Our commitment to excellence and passion for technology are what drive us to constantly evolve and adapt to the needs of our clients. We recognise that operators don’t want a dozen different APIs or overly complicated setups, they just need payments to work stable and smoothly.
At its core, Spayz.io covers everything from Open Banking to Mass Payouts, eWallets, Card Acquiring and Local Bank transfers. However, our real competitive edge is our Alternative Payment Methods (APMs). With more than 20+ popular local methods, like FPX in Malaysia, UPI in India, M-PESA in Kenya and QR Promptpay in Thailand, Spayz.io makes sure gamers can pay exactly how they prefer.
All this comes via single API integration, fully compliant with PCI DSS standards, GDPR, AML and KYC requirements. Spayz. io supports responsible gaming and helps operators attract more players – creating a safer, smoother and more enjoyable experience for everyone involved.
GLOBAL COVERAGE, LOCAL EXPERTISE
Spayz.io understands that every market is di erent. With more than 30 Asian, African and European countries in our portfolio –jurisdictions aren’t just points on a map, they’re dynamic ecosystems with speci c payment behaviours. That’s why local precision has always been our priority. In 2025 alone, we have launched in seven key markets: Nigeria,
South Africa, Cameroon, Egypt, Japan, the Philippines and Turkey. Each rollout marks another step in our mission to deliver highquality, e ective payment solutions right where they’re needed most.
“We help gaming operators truly connect with local players,” explains the Spayz.io team. “If your player in Kenya prefers paying with M-PESA, why offer anything else? Local methods mean quicker deposits, faster payouts and happier players.”
MANAGE RISK WITH SPAYZ.IO
Operators choose to work with Spayz.io because they see the value in a partner that delivers more than just transactions. From streamlining payment ows to increasing player satisfaction and improving revenue performance, Spayz.io helps operators unlock real, measurable results.
• Fast onboarding and streamlined integration: Go from signup to processing, quickly – with no unnecessary waiting.
• 24/7 expert support: Personalised help with real people, available around the clock.
• Real-time analytics: Easy-to-use dashboards to instantly spot and optimise payment trends.
• Risk & fraud protection: Built-in, real-time monitoring to keep your business safe.
• Tiered commission structures: Fair pricing that rewards you as you grow.
• Market-speci c solutions for regulated and high-risk markets: Navigate complex regulatory markets smoothly with region-speci c expertise.
methods – Virtual Accounts, Jazzcash, Easypasia, Touch’n’Go, FPX, Dana, OVO, MobileMoney, Viettel and Open Banking solution – each designed to meet the demands of local markets and redefine how payments are settled across the region.
BUILT AROUND IGAMING NEEDS
At its heart, Spayz.io isn’t just another payment gateway – it’s a strategic partner who actively helps merchants to grow revenues. For iGaming businesses, international scaling with exible and secure solutions, quick deposits and instant payouts are crucial. Spayz.io’s solutions are carefully designed to maximise acceptance rates and remove friction at every step: “Our merchants don’t want another tech provider, they want a partner who genuinely understands their daily challenges. That’s us.” New markets bring new users, but they also bring new expectations – especially when it comes to how they pay. The merchants who succeed internationally are the ones who take the time to understand each market’s needs – and who partner with PSPs ready to meet them.
YOUR NEXT STEP WITH SPAYZ.IO
Payments in iGaming shouldn’t be painful. They should be seamless, fast and reliable. Whether you’re looking to conquer new markets, simplify operations, or increase customer loyalty, Spayz.io has your back.
In the end, it comes down to simple logic: Fewer payment problems equal more time to grow your business. If that sounds good, Spayz.io is ready to talk.
• High success rates: Reduced declines mean fewer frustrated players and more revenue.
RECENT MILESTONES
2025 has been big for Spayz.io. A fresh rebrand, complete with a new website, bold logo and sharper identity marks a new chapter, perfectly matching our growth ambitions.
Over the past year, we have launched 10 new payment
The road to compliance
Within the complex world of payments, compliance and user experience can often seem an unwilling pair. Gambling Insider explores how payments suppliers can enhance the way operators approach compliant customer acquisition
It’s an age-old business conundrum that spans across almost every imaginable industry and is attributable to sleepless nights and C-level hair loss across the globe. It’s an ever-changing beast that taunts with its inevitable evolution, peeping its head around the corner with a renewed set of requirements just as the resolution to the previous set is achieved.
Yes, the thin line of compliance vs user experience is something of an unforgiving creature that demands to be tamed by all entrepreneurial entities and individuals –both inside and outside the gambling industry. Tackling the conundrum is something that every businessperson signs up for – knowingly or not – when they enter the executive world. And depending on the industry, each sub-sector of a given market comes rife with its own unique set of requirements based both on geographical location and industry segment.
As we evolve into an increasingly digital world, managing the balance of a unique, frictionless and functional user experience that remains both compliant and tailorable to fast-changing and globally nuanced trends is – from an operator’s perspective – either a challenge relished, or a dreaded hurdle. Nevertheless, pressure – as they say – makes diamonds and innovation simply doesn’t occur within an environment in which people are not pushed to their limits. None of these facts are truer anywhere than within the changing face of gambling.
least, certainly not iGaming as we know it. Naturally, nobody understands this fact better than the payments providers themselves. Enter Zak Cutler, President of Global Gaming at Paysafe, to explain in
what way the gambling industry is – in his experience – supported by the payments industry, especially in the modern landscape. He tells Gambling Insider: “In my current role, I’ve found that the entire point of
Of course, it’s not just remaining compliant that is the challenge for online payments providers and gambling operators these days, it’s also keeping customers away from unregulated spaces and tempting them over from the retail bookmakers. Indeed, for those online operators who are looking to acquire new customers, the payment part of this delicate process is perhaps the most pivotal point of contention.
A LITTLE HELP FROM OUR FRIENDS
Indeed, without the payments industry, there is no online gaming industry – or at
Zak
Cutler, President of Global Gaming, Paysafe
“As regulators continue to mature and look at data that shows where they can improve, that’s what they are going to do” - Zak Cutler
digital payments for gambling is really to optimise conversion for gambling operators. If you take a giant step back and look at the data in our surveys, a huge component of why players are loyal or why they choose a specific betting operator is due to their payment stack. Really, the availability of various payment options can be where it all comes together for the operators.”
Cutler explains the fact that – as we know – eyeballs are everything in the online gambling business and, of course, both acquiring and retaining those players is at the heart of this discussion and, ultimately, the crux of inflating revenue streams.
He continues: “Operators go out and spend millions of dollars to basically get their brands in front of the consumer for the chance of getting a given player’s business. The first interaction they then have is, aside from registering and giving their email, to take out their credit card or to decide how they want to load their account for payment. If they get to this point and the operator
doesn’t have the payment type that the player wants, or it doesn’t go well and there’s some glitch or conversion issue – the operators are going to lose business. If this happens 20-30% of the time on a $50m marketing spend, it drastically changes the economics. As the world becomes increasingly digital, we sit at a critical piece of the conversion funnel, where players make the most important decision. Are they going to reach into their pocket? If that doesn’t go well, they’re going to go somewhere else.”
Concurring is Tom Townson, Partner and Head of Financial Crime at Grant Thornton UK, who builds: “In a regulatory environment that prizes consumer protection, robust financial crime and responsible gambling controls, payment providers with smart onboarding capabilities are no longer just facilitators. Payment providers that offer integrated compliance support, instant bank account verification and smooth deposit flows can significantly reduce friction at the point of entry,”
He continues, telling Gambling Insider: “In turn, the ability to deliver a frictionless onboarding experience has made payment providers an increasingly powerful asset for operators. As mentioned by Nick, the onboarding experience directly influences the number of players that will use the operator’s services and the operator’s ability to comply with regulatory requirements. In a market where expectations are shaped by frictionless experiences, players will always expect to open an account, deposit and play within minutes.”
It would appear, then, that payment service providers – or PSPs – act as a key link in a long and delicate chain that bonds gambling operators with their consumers. Naturally, as explained by Vents Štrombergs, Sales Manager at Zimpler, the provision of a frictionless experience also informs a PSP’s relationship with its operator partners and –by extension – affects the development of the broader industry over time.
“A seamless onboarding journey can significantly influence an operator’s choice of payment partner – and operators are often the key innovators that spark major industry shifts. Operators need to scale efficiently, and they depend on PSPs to simplify payment processes while maintaining full compliance,” Štrombergs tells Gambling Insider.
“Today, a top-tier PSP isn’t just about payments – it’s about being a strategic enabler of operational efficiency, regulatory trust and user-centric design. As markets evolve, frictionless onboarding has become a defining competitive edge.”
The importance of a payments experience that is both effective and frictionless, then, is undoubtedly paramount for modern online operators. However, the really tricky part is the aforementioned compliance dilemma. On the surface of things, it appears that the back and forth of changing legislation sparking new innovation should be a delicate dance, balanced between operator and regulatory body alone.
“Partners should deliver more than just fast and secure transactions”Tom Townson
Nevertheless, this is by no means strictly true. Compliance is a multi-faceted affair and many hands – as they say – make for light work. But is this saying applicable to the payment world and, if so, from the compliance side, what kind of regulatoryrelated solutions should the ideal payments provider partner offer?
It’s a question Mike de Graaff, Co-Founder and Chief Compliance Officer at online gaming regulatory compliance consultant BetComply, is well poised to answer. He explains to Gambling Insider: “In my opinion and from a compliance perspective, the ideal payments provider isn’t just a transaction processor; they’re a strategic partner. They should deliver
Tom Townson, Partner and Head of Financial Crime, Grant Thornton UK
top-of-the-line KYC and AML tools to automate identity checks and risk profiling, real-time transaction monitoring to spot and stop suspicious activity, and seamless system integration, so operators can plug in without overhauling their tech stack.
“Flexibility is key; they need to adapt to local rules while keeping the player journey smooth. It’s about proactive compliance that doesn’t kill the commercial side of the business. “
Townson agrees that a proactive PSP approach is essential to not only delivering results for their operator partners, but also pushing for wider growth and innovation, “ Partners should deliver more than just fast and secure transactions. Ideally, they should also support the operator’s ongoing regulatory compliance. This could include the partner providing real-time AML and fraud detection, sanctions screening and real-time sanctions, PEP & adverse-media screening at both pay-in and pay-out.
“Additionally, the partner should support open banking solutions and strong customer authentication, integrated to the operator’s interface. They should provide automated reporting, customisable compliance dashboards and adapt to market-specific regulations across jurisdictions. In an ideal world, the payments provider would operate a full suite of compliance-related solutions, including well-designed in-built compliance architecture.”
De Graaff closes the topic effectively with a defining statement: “I know it’s easier said than done, but do what works in the black market, compliantly.”
SIMPLIFYING THE COMPLEX
Indeed, easier said than done is ideal phrasing. Regardless of your end goal, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) – an internationally recognised security standard – is certainly a good place to start.
However, within an untamed wilderness of know your customer (KYC) and know your business (KYB), consumer security laws, data privacy legislations and payment network policies – it would be forgivable for even the most intrepid adventurers to become overwhelmed. Regardless of the complexities, the core challenge of remaining compliant while ensuring an efficient user experience remains, and those PSPs that can achieve this standard are primed to make themselves a priceless asset to any online operator in the gambling industry. Finding ways to simplify the process, as explained by Cutler, is paramount.
“If you break down what it actually means to be compliant – and why that creates friction – it is only a handful of things. Firstly, your KYC process – which is if you’re required
“As markets evolve, frictionless onboarding has become a defining competitive edge” - Vents Štrombergs
to verify someone’s age, that they’re not on a specific exclusion list, or any other reason why they can’t play on your site. To do this, you have to collect data and that’s one natural friction point. You then also need to perform geolocation checks, which often involves having to download additional external software. Still, ultimately the short way of summarising these things is KYC. Happily, all this KYC stuff is baked into the regulatory framework to make sure that –if you’re a player – you are who you say you are, you are where you say you are, you are of age, and you are not on an exclusion list. One of the key factors is ensuring a good exchange of data with the operators as this can help streamline that process so they’re not asked for the same data again and again.
“The second possible friction point is centred around fraud because you have chargebacks, which is fraud that isn’t really fraud. You want to build your system so that it can essentially stop mistakes before
they get made. An example of chargeback is maybe someone entered the wrong zip code tied to their credit card. Well, instead of freezing that account, we might have history on that player that helps the operator recognise that this player has been playing for 10 years, has no previous record flagged in our system and can be allowed to move forward in the process. Dealing with actual fraud is another thing, but of course the overarching goal is to try and deal with all these friction points as quickly as possible.”
On the surface of the issue, the benefits of offering a payments stack that can handle both the many regulatory and technical requirements of a given transaction at speed are easily identifiable. Operators get to advertise a seamless experience, PSPs keep operators happy by connecting them with their players, and players get to exercise their desire to wager quickly and effectively. Simple? Well, yes – but there’s a little more to it.
Vents Štrombergs, Sales Manager, Zimpler
As is a well-established fact in the gambling space, the more regulated operators can offer players, the more likely players are to stay away from the black market. This, of course, relates to an almost incalculable number of industry areas that are entirely unrelated to payments, be it personalisation, localisation, promotional offers or innovative technologies.
Naturally, all of these aspects could also be tied to the payments space but, from a broader perspective, the past five years has seen the payments industry contribute to player safety enhancements in online gambling in numerous ways. As specified by De Graaff, “ The payments sector has played a big role in the gambling industry over the past five years. On
one hand, advancements in payment technologies like seamless digital wallets and instant transaction processing have made it easier for players to engage with regulated platforms. These tools enhance convenience and security, which operators use to retain players who might otherwise drift to unregulated spaces.”
REGULATORY TUG-OF-WAR: ORDINANCE VS ANONYMITY
Within the modern landscape, it is no surprise to see some operators choose to speak out in opposition against regulations they nd overly stringent. On the ip side, many organisations within gambling see regulation as a chance to innovate and – on (very) rare occasions – even encourage
regulation. Yet the primary of these two examples can, at times, make it difficult to differentiate between instances where companies don’t want to innovate around new regulation, and instances when companies quite simply can’t innovate around it.
The European continent is widely regarded as one of the strictest when it comes to legislation and – in the opinion of many in the payment space – the evolving restrictions coming out of the region are tightening to the point where no PSP is immune to feeling the pinch.
“Here’s the bad news,” states De Graaff: “Increasing regulations, especially around KYC and AML, have made innovation on UX harder. Stricter verification can frustrate players, nudging them toward less-regulated alternatives that promise a quicker, less invasive experience.
“It’s not an impossible task to keep players in regulated markets, but it is a tough one. The payments sector needs to double down on streamlining compliance without compromising the user experience. Otherwise, we’re just handing players to the grey and black market on a platter.”
It’s no secret that, in the EU, payments companies wrestle with many challenges. Shifting KYC demands across differing regions meet at a cross-section with cross-border transaction complexities, such as reporting obligations that vary by jurisdiction.
On the other side of the coin, there is data privacy under GDPR and – more broadly, player convenience vs compliance, which, as De Graaff states, can present an array of unforeseen challenges for compliant operators: “Speaking from BetComply’s experience, we know that every click you add to the registration flow, you increase drop-off. But some clicks are mandatory.”
Mike de Graaff, Co-Founder and Chief Compliance Officer, BetComply
“Outdated legal frameworks are not fun to deal with when you have new ideas” – Mike de Graaff
He continues: “Over the last five years, these flash points have evolved from straightforward compliance issues to more complex and cross-over problems like data privacy and player protection. Regulators have given us more granular rules, tighter transparency demands and a sharper focus on consumer rights. The result? A fragmented landscape where payments companies need to stay compliant across borders. For players, this means a mixed bag: more steps in the verification process or delays in transactions can easily make you lose a player, but having good security measures offer trust.”
Increased payments-related regulation vs retained player anonymity, in recent years, has begun to drive out something of a gnawing tectonic scrape, with the resulting friction sending tremors through
the market that – as we have established –reverberate in a very real way. In a world where both the desire and expectation for instantaneous online experiences are deeply entrenched, the failure to deliver a seamless payments encounter can and will drive players away from the regulated space. This affects both businesses and lives.
Equally important to understand is the importance of effective regulation, alongside the assurance of consumer anonymity –should they desire it. All is not lost, however, as De Graaff suggests that the exploding world of crypto and blockchain – where anonymity is more of a guarantee – could hold the key to at least partially remedying this issue.
“One way forward is tapping into tech like blockchain. It’s not perfect, but it offers pseudonymity, letting players shield their identities while still leaving a trail for oversight. The crypto world proves you can blend privacy and accountability, though it’s a long shot without regulators warming to it. Outdated legal frameworks are
not fun to deal with when you have new ideas. In the coming years, the fix lies in smart innovation: tech-driven solutions that satisfy both sides without breaking the bank or the player experience.
regulation and player anonymity is on top of most minds in the industry. Regulators want full visibility to curb fraud and laundering; players want privacy without the hassle. Operators want to provide services compliantly and still make money.”
This point is swiftly backed up by Zimpler’s Štrombergs, who states: “It’s true crypto could hold some kind of key to help PSPs and operators change the way they approach compliance and security with regard to anonymity. I would say as payment providers, we are all closely watching how cryptocurrency will evolve within the EU’s regulatory framework for its potential to deliver fast, cost-effective and secure transaction capabilities.”
Despite offering a noticeably more privatised and often equally as secure payment solution, the world of crypto is still, in many ways, a murky landscape of which masses in and indeed out of the gambling industry are sceptical simply because many do not understand how it works. In short, there are certainly aspects from crypto payments that could help inform
“Nevertheless, the tug-of-war between from crypto payments that could help inform the issue of compliance vs anonymity. However, the differing desires of regulators, operators and players is a triple frontier far too steep for crypto to summit itself.
Views, though, across the EU market around user experience are changing – with increasingly frequent reports from suppliers across the industry that regulators are becoming increasingly concerned – and sometimes even involved – with UX. This, in the opinion of Štrombergs, is a changing factor that could be key to the discussion of conflicting ideals between operators and regulators in the long term.
“As regulators emphasise player safety and experience, this shift is already reshaping how payment providers operate,” Štrombergs explains: “Features like player identity verification, spending limits and frictionless financial controls are increasingly necessary. Open banking and streamlined identity checks are also accelerating, and providers must continuously innovate to remain both compliant and competitive.”
Townson agrees, arguing that the increasing involvement of regulatory bodies in user experience can have a knock-on effect on the operator’s long-term UX agenda, changing the industry directly via a top-down influential structure: “Regulators across the EU gaming and
via a top-down influential structure: betting industry are increasingly prioritising player experience through enhanced consumer protection. This includes transparent and fair payment
processes that enable a frictionless user experience, while also ensuring protections for vulnerable players and the prevention of money laundering.
“Furthermore, knowing that regulators are more attuned to player experience, it is an axiom that operators who adopt fast, secure and compliant payment infrastructures will improve player experience but also meet the growing demands of regulatory frameworks in the EU. Of course, some regulations designed to assist with elements of the customer experience – such as security and peace of mind – are sometimes regarded as running counter to other elements of customer experience, like speed and convenience.”
protect the consumer. Obviously, we want those decisions to be informed and to be commercially viable at the same time. As regulators continue to mature and they look at data that shows them where they can improve, that’s what they are going to do.
“I think regulators absolutely will shape things continuously and possibly increasingly so. In Europe, there’s much more analysis now maybe than there was five or 10 years ago, which is natural; as more data comes out, that’s when you tend to want to make decisions.”
licensed online. What that data will highlight is that the online component actually becomes an additional marketing point to drive increased visitation back into the land-based side. Despite this somewhat paradoxical outcome, the data also allows you to monetise that user when they can’t come to your land-based location. It’s not cannibalistic, it is creative and ultimately grows the whole pie.
The idea that regulators would begin becoming at least conceptually involved with user experience in the industry would have come as a surprise, to say the least, to many in the market five years ago. However, it would appear that in some continental landscapes (the EU especially) regulators are moving away from the idea of simply drawing up legislation for security and safety purposes.
Building on this point, Cutler chimes in: “The regulator’s job ultimately is to
By this point, we are well established in the fact that ensuring a payments experience is frictionless enough to keep players away from the black market – while remaining compliant –is the key conundrum faced by PSPs today. But the unregulated market isn’t the only thing that both they and online operators must consistently compete with for business. Indeed, the retail bookmaker and casino spaces also present a formidable competitor from which PSPs must try to help online operators take players away from.
Cutler gives his two cents: “I’ll start with the retail component. A lot of data suggests, especially in the US and UK, where the land-based players are, in fact, connected and
“I always say that where payments can come into play to support operators and tie all the issues we’ve touched on in this piece together is through a digital wallet that can carry a balance. Technically, a player could even carry a balance online that is applicable down the road in a land-based casino and I think that’s really where a lot of folks – not just players but also operators on the online and retail side – want to go. It’s hard to break the pattern of using cash in a casino; that’s still the preferred option for players and while retail can still serve players through loyalty and experience, online there are simply more ways to pay.
“Moving on to the black market part of the conundrum, I think if you look at a lot of our surveys, player security and instant payouts
are very much some of the highest priorities for consumers. When you look at the black market, maybe there is some slight advantage somewhere, whether it’s better odds or less friction; I think what we’re seeing is players are still gravitating towards the safer regulated space because they know that if they win big and just want to get their money out, they’re protected by the regulations. Paysafe has instant payouts in our system. It’s one of the most popular features we’ve launched in recent years. Those types of things go much smoother in a regulated environment because we –alongside our operator partners – just want to have the best player experience. I think that, really, is the trade-off. Security and efficiency of withdrawing funds.”
CHANGE IS GOING TO COME...
As certain as the seasons themselves, change in the payments and wider gambling industry is constant and often drastic. Perhaps, then, revisiting how the payments industry has already contributed its hand to help operators remaining compliant over the past five years, amid all the change that has befallen the landscape in that time, can give us an indication into how the
conundrum of frictionless online UX and compliance could unfold in years to come.
“Player preferences are shifting,” states Štrombergs, “with digital convenience increasingly winning out over traditional channels. Innovations like ‘Deposit and Play’ have already simplified the sign-up and funding processes while meeting KYC requirements, making online gaming more accessible. Looking forward, I would anticipate continued improvements like Face ID and biometric verification to further enhance both user experience and compliance. These shifts mirror broader consumer behaviour toward mobile-first, digital-first interaction.”
Townson adds: “The payments industry has played an important role in steering customers away from unregulated gambling spaces by leveraging its regulated status and building trust among players. Recognisable payment services brands enhance legitimacy, encouraging users to provide their financial details securely.
“In Sweden, where payment providers actively identify and block transactions to unregulated gambling sites, the regulator has introduced a requirement that payment providers report if their systems are being
used by unlicensed operators. This change makes it harder for users to engage with unregulated platforms and encourages communication between operator and regulator. Clearly, the role of the payments industry is one of collaboration with the regulator and operators to collectively promote safer, more secure and user-friendly environments, contributing to the industry’s technological and regulatory progress.”
The buzzword of compliance, borne out of ever-changing regulation, is the catalyst for change not only in operator offerings but also consumer habits. The increasingly digitised nature of the world has already changed the industry forever – and while the role of retail will always remain key, it is changing in a way that is irreversible.
As this shift continues to influence the payments space, the role of the PSP will become increasingly important in helping operators provide the kind of service that helps solve both the issue of user experience and compliance in one fell swoop. Be it via increasing crypto integration, biometric advancements or a regulatory UX awakening –operators navigating the balance can find a helping hand in the payments industry.
Turning intrigue into interest
Gambling Insider Editor Tim Poole speaks with Owen Monagan, Co-Founder and CEO of Layup, to dissect how a company combining sports betting with prize bonds can be considered beyond the realm of gambling
Can you walk me through the general pitch of the business?
Essentially, what we do at Layup is based on a product that we grew up with in Ireland and you also have in the UK. If you’re going to explain it to an Irish person, you would just say it’s prize bonds for sports, and they would have a pretty good idea of what it is – but we operate in America and the concept of what we’re doing is quite novel, so it needs a little bit more exposition. What we do is we give you a chance to win and save money for supporting a sports team or just watching sports in general. We’re not even a gambling company at all. We’re in partnership with a federally insured
bank o ering a savings programme. They’re the custodians of the funds; they’re the responsible adults in the room and they’re a federally insured bank. So as you would expect, you’d have the same protections they would if we went out of business, to just make sure everybody gets their deposits back.
Our product is actually enabled by something called the American Savings Promotion Act. So that’s the legislative background and I’ll tell you exactly what that means. These products are sometimes called a prize savings account and what they do is take the interest of every saver and put them into a pool or pot. They then run some sort of chance-based game on top
of the savings that awards a portion of that pot to a few lucky savers. So in the UK and Ireland, it’s a lottery called premium bonds or prize bonds. In the UK, for example, where this is the biggest by far, there is about $157bn-159bn saved in the programme. If you took that programme and you just put it in America, it’d be the ninth-largest depository institution by deposit size. About 24 million people use it in the UK and the average balance, if you convert it into USD, is about $6,500. Every single month they run a lottery in the UK, somebody knocks on the door and says, “hey, you won a million pounds as a reward for saving money in this bond programme”. All we’re doing
is taking this concept that we know works. These are very unique products and applying them to the concept of sports or even the problem of sports gaming means some of the negatives and downsides that are associated with that.
What do I mean by that? There is one thing I love about this business, probably the most compared to anything else, and it is that the research shows these products aren’t just a fun way to save and win a prize, but they also have a cannibalisation effect on the existing gambling activity. So you have that with the lottery in the UK and we’re trying to do the same thing with sports gaming in the US. The US is really missing anyone doing anything about it, and I think it’s an important time to do something that is both a total profit-seeking endeavour for us, but actually is aligned with fans, and is addressing the problems of a lack of saving and some of the problems associated with gambling.
When you say cannibalisation, do you mean people moving away from traditional sports gaming and lottery to do this, or something else? I mean that just, but it’s more subtle. If you play the lottery, you are losing half your money every time you buy a lottery ticket. That’s basically the return on investment, so you should lose 50% of your money. With premium bonds or similar products, you’re getting a shot to win a million-dollar lottery every month. It’s not as much money, but what happens is just every once in a
while you realise you don’t actually need to buy a ticket. You’ll probably still do it for the big, big jackpots, so this becomes more like a baseline entertainment in a responsible way. Of course, you can go play the lottery, but you’ve got yourself covered in a fun and engaging way. So I wouldn’t say that they cannibalise as in reducing that. But the lottery is, I think, played by 2/3 of British people and premium bonds are held by 1/3, so you can do the math there.
How do you deal with the challenge of going to a traditional sports bettor that trusts their usual product and would therefore be reluctant to switch? You don’t try to replace the existing thing. This is another product. So there are only a few examples I’ve found in the world that operate like this, but the utility of our product isn’t necessarily the replacement; it’s also the secondary bene t you’re getting too. So if you’re a sports bettor, you might think to yourself: I’m going to win some money, but also I’m going to save some money. And you’re just a person, too, so if you have these secondary bene ts, you take yourself out of competing for the exact same desire.
There’s a product you can find in every stadium in Canada and most stadiums in America called a 50/50 raffle; you buy a raffle ticket and at the end of the game somebody in the stadium wins half the money and the other half goes straight to charity. So why would you ever play that when you could do the lottery? Well, it’s because you’re donating to charity, as well, and that makes it a fun, lighthearted way where you’re not expecting to get the same returns – you’re getting a secondary benefit, and that’s what we’re offering too. It is a fun, fair and hopefully soon-to-be-trusted way to watch sports, save
money, win prizes and just be engaged. You can do the same hardcore form of betting that you want to do, but because we have a secondary benefit, it’s not a direct competitor.
I’ve learned from doing plenty of interviews like this over the past seven years that we could talk about the top level, but I might still not necessarily visualise exactly what is going on. So, walk me through it... if I’m signing up to Layup right now, what’s the process? What do I do and what’s the equivalent of placing a bet?
It’s remarkably simple. The app in particular! In Ireland, buying a premium bond is easy, but also really unique and di erent. There’s nothing like this in America, and I think there’s a big niche missed of fair and fun products instead of all this hardcore stu . This could be retail, but we’re a small start-up, we can only do so much with our time, right? On the app, we send you three picks, and these picks are intentionally supposed to look a lot like a parlay; this will change over time depending on a few di erent pivots we’re looking at, but this is what we’re doing right now. Parlays are a massive issue in the American sports betting audience, the same as accumulators in the UK and Ireland. More or less about $8bn is lost to these every year, and I think it’s something crazy where something like 25% of total betting handle is parlays, and they make up over 50% of the losses. They take advantage of skewness and all these different things that are difficult for humans to quantify the risk of. That’s exactly what a lottery is too. It’s your inability to understand the numbers and skewness. So that’s why we use this product as the experience in itself.
Owen Monagan, Co-Founder and CEO, Layup
So these picks, are they the same for everyone? Are they random for di erent people? What level of AI generation is involved in them? Because in sports betting that’s the main innovation at the moment. They are essentially taken from sports as an aggregation of sportsbook odds. We take the nearest 50/50 odds lines, like the over/under, and we randomly give you either side. You might get under today, while di erent players will get the over. Some people might get the same ones, but it’s just a coin ip for each line, essentially the whole way across, and that’s how we stay exempt from lottery laws. All of the legislation we use is all on being chance-based. There are a few insights I’ve found that people still enjoy that, but it changes us again from sports betting to a degree. You’re getting picks every single day, and if they happen, you win a prize. That’s all pretty normal.
The magic again is that you cannot lose money. It is impossible to lose money. The only thing that is ever being foregone is your interest, and that’s where all of the picks are being funded. That’s how we make money.
So let’s say you’re going to get 4% interest, we would take 3% of that and put it into your picks, and then we just take a percentage of our revenue. Our whole incentive is to get you to save because the more money you have in our accounts, the more you can win and the higher the profit we make. The player is just depositing money into the account. That’s the difference, there’s no betting.
You’re just getting it. It’s almost like checking the weather every day. The key thing is you can never lose money in these programmes. The magic is that our customers go, “you’re telling me when I don’t win, I don’t lose?”
We’ve tried advertising ‘no cost prizes’ and other different variations and we’re narrowing down what makes the most sense. But the point is you can never lose money because it’s in a federally insured savings programme. I should clarify very specifically, it’s in a savings programme held by a federally insured bank.
So it’s a scale proposition because you need numbers of players. We’ve seen operators o er no-loss bonuses or guarantees... for a betting product,
“The magic again is that you cannot lose money. It is impossible to lose money. The only thing that is ever being foregone is your interest, and that’s where all of the picks are being funded. That’s how we make money”
that is wrong and would be misleading. But in this case, if it’s 100% true and you’re able to prove it, then that’s a di erent ball game, isn’t it?
Yeah, this is not a gambling product. This is a banking product and it is regulated in most states by the banking and insurance departments. The act that inspires basically everything we do is called the American Savings Promotion Act.
It’s quite interesting to see products like this. There are currently multiple products that are e ectively targeting the gambling audience but not trying to directly replace gambling. Similarly to predictions markets, it is the same eld of players but under a di erent set of regulations.
Yeah, for sure, it’s something I think about a lot. It’s obviously a little bit more sketchy, but companies like crypto.com are trying to operate in the sports space as well. A lot of people are trying to do these nancial sports super money apps, but our unique selling point is that it’s the principle of never losing your principal. You’re going to do something good for yourself and it just makes it way chiller and nicer.
I don’t think we’re here yet in our products looking at it and I wouldn’t feel comfortable with it today, but in Ireland, this is something that people buy for themselves and it’s a gift given to children, a prize bond. So how is that anything like a gambling product that you would get from FanDuel or even the lottery? It just isn’t.
It’s something different and we’re still working towards hitting that note. We’re trying to get to that place where it’s just a fair, fun, safe and trusted thing, and that is very different from even what RobinHood is trying, or even FanDuel and DraftKings. It’s a different lane, but the same financialisation of sports for sure.
I de nitely get the concept, but the average person will see sports betting, the phrase “I can’t lose” and think it must be a scam. It’s an alarm bell for everybody, right?
It’s the biggest thing we deal with all the time. We talk to our users and they try to refer their friends but somebody goes, “Nah man, no way that could be real”. Why does somebody have to lose? We don’t need to do that. It’s just the construct of what our legislative choices in the past are. One of the very rst lotteries that ever existed was actually based on bonds. It was run by the UK. That’s why the UK is such an epicentre. It was called the Million Adventure and was introduced during the Nine Years’ War against the French. The war emptied the co ers, they needed to get money back into the system, and that’s where they introduced
these things. Then in Ireland in the 1950s, they did the modern incarnation of this because they needed money out of the mattresses and into the banking system; it’s just a really clever, fun way to get deposits in more than anything else.
I actually wrote a bit about this because I just didn’t see it published enough, but they literally used a giant chest and it makes sense. It just makes sense because, if you’re like back in 1694, how are you going to run a modern lottery? You lack the communication lines, all that type of stuff. So if the lottery ticket is a bond, it allows you to have latency in draw timing. There’s a whole bunch of products like this out there that have been around for hundreds of years, but just usually run by governments. It’s not really innovative, I don’t see why it has to be that way.
So then the actual app itself, we’re still changing aspects and trying to find the right version of it. If you choose a set of picks, and then you hit multiple days in a week, you multiply the payout. So three picks by themselves are not that much, but if you multiply that by seven, that’s 21 picks in a week. That’s what we’re talking about. You can win smaller prizes for hitting a single day, but just explicitly, essentially every $50 you save with us increases your weekly max payout by as much as $1,000. That’s the business model and we just want you to deposit and save money with us and all deposits go directly to NBKC Bank Member FDIC. There is no middleman, there are no other players, there’s nothing like that.
That’s it. It’s just us and them, and they’re in charge of all the important aspects like keeping people’s deposits safe, and then we just make a really compelling sports product on top of that. Our product drives deposits and helps them increase their deposit base because they want to do that as a bank, while we make revenue off of those deposits as well, from them paying us a rate and that’s the business model.
With everything you’re aiming to achieve, what kind of market size are you potentially looking at? And what ambitions do you have?
It’s pretty straightforward. There are a lot of ways to take this, but this is just a grand strategy. It’s just the principle of never losing a principal. I want Layup to be known as the safe place. If you look at what bonds are like in Ireland, what does this tell you? It’s fun to talk about it being good, but it can be a hard sell, right? I want to make a product where casual and hardcore bettors alike can have fun, be entertained, get a chance to win and do something good for themselves. If you project the size of the UK premium bonds to the US market, around 35%, if you were to hit that you’d have 112 million users. Maybe we would even o er products that are even more dry and simple as this over time, but at the scale of what these are, they are huge.
Again, Ireland, it’s 10% of the population. You apply that to America and it’s around 33 million people. FanDuel and DraftKings right
now, how many users do they have? It’ll be around 20 million. That’s what we’re talking about here, and this is federally enacted. There is a desire for these programmes to be created all across the country. I think our idea is pretty much ‘go big and enter into a market of increasingly aggressive operators attempting to take as much money from Americans sports fans out there.’ We want to be the only ones doing the exact opposite, and that’s a huge brand opportunity in itself.
Are there any key final messages you’d like to include?
If you nd it interesting, just reach out to us. We’ve found that state regulators, and actually some of the operators, are delighted that there’s actually a commoditised way to address some of the concerns around RG in the industry. About 50% of our users who bet report that they gambled less after using our product for 30 days. I don’t think we’re going to position our business as RG, but it makes sense as well. So that’s a good advantage.
If you’re a regulator, an operator or anyone along those lines, and you just want to learn at least about this legislation and how we can even encourage more of this in America, I would be delighted to have a conversation. The way I look at this is pretty straightforward in terms of education and information: a rising tide raises all boats, so it’s important for us to talk to as many people as possible.
Drilling into the data
47% Of Players said ‘they might’ 44% Of Players said ‘yes’
When asked if players would use a budgeting tool: 9% Of Players said ‘no’
Neosurf conducted extensive research before launching in the US. Below, Sue Page, CEO Americas, shares what insights the payments company gained into player behaviour and why a data-driven approach is crucial when entering a new market
When entering a new region, a one-sizefits-all approach simply doesn’t work. A data-driven strategy allows businesses to understand not just high-level trends, but the nuances of each local market –including language, cultural behaviours, preferred payment methods, and platform expectations. This insight is essential for building relevance and trust with new users. It also ensures that product offerings, onboarding flows and communications are tailored in a way that resonates with the specific demographic. Without this foundational understanding, even the most robust technology can fall flat. Success in payments starts with understanding the user. In the iGaming space, this means knowing how players behave, where they hit friction and how often that friction turns into frustration or churn. For Neosurf, launching in the US was never going to be about offering yet another payment option. It had to be about solving real operator and player pain points – and that meant starting with the data.
Partnering with Betting Hero, Neosurf commissioned in-depth research to explore player payment habits, budgeting behaviour and the gaps in the current experience. The study, which included both surveys and 1:1 interviews, revealed issues that are costing operators more than just customer satisfaction.
FIGURE 1: DEPOSIT & WITHDRAWAL FREQUENCY
Among the standout findings was the
Betting Hero’s research drew qualitative data from in-depth interviews with a panel of New Jersey-based respondents and was complimented by a supporting quantitative study of bettors in New Jersey, North Carolina and Colorado.
sheer frequency of transactions. Over 60% of bettors reported depositing multiple times a month, and over 50% were withdrawing just as often. Specifically, 28% of users deposit weekly and another 27% deposit every other week. Withdrawals followed a similar pattern, with 25% withdrawing weekly and 27% every other week. These frequent money movements –in and out of operator platforms – represent not just user behaviour but significant operational costs. Every withdrawal is a touchpoint, and every touchpoint is a cost. Many operators are seeing funds leave the ecosystem entirely only to return later. The inefficiency of this cycle is an industry-wide issue and a drain on margin.
This is where a smarter wallet solution becomes more than a convenience – it becomes a strategic lever. Neosurf saw an
Figure 1: Deposit & withdrawal frequency
opportunity to help operators keep more money in play while still giving players the instant access they expect. By minimising processing fees and creating a frictionless payments experience, the wallet offers a solution for both the players and operators. This approach also appeals to the 66% of respondents who said transaction speed was very important, and the 69% who indicated they would switch to a competitor offering faster withdrawals.
FIGURE 2: TOP DEPOSIT MOTIVATORS
gaming in the traditional, checkbox sense. It’s about smart money management that is embedded naturally into the wagering experience.
Withdraw Every Other Week Withdraw Weekly Deposit Every Other Week
And while 73% of players said responsible gaming was important, very few were using the tools currently available to them. Why? Because they didn’t identify with the messaging. In fact, 67% of respondents reported not using any self-limiting or budgeting tools. Many saw RG features as being for “problem gamblers,” not everyday users. By shifting the focus toward budgeting and visibility, Neosurf aims to make these tools feel like a benefit, not a warning.
As Neosurf expands across North America and beyond, this research-first, player-centric model is already informing how products are built and partnerships are formed. It’s also opening a new conversation with operators. At Neosurf we always say “Imagine a payments company that does things a little differently” here we can take that one step further; What if payments weren’t just functional, but strategic? What if the very tools that help players feel more in control also help operators keep more value within their ecosystem?
27%
The answer, increasingly, is found in the data.
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
When asked if players would use a budgeting tool:
44% Of Players said ‘yes’
47% Of Players said ‘they might’
Interestingly, the study also debunked some long-held industry assumptions. While promotions were seen as a key acquisition lever, they came third in the list of deposit motivators. Players are far more influenced by personal budgeting (36%) and recent wins or losses (21%), while only 18% cited promotions. That tells us players want control. They want to feel in charge of their money and are not enticed by short-term incentives or even major sporting events. This insight further validated the development of a unified wallet dashboard – one that helps players manage their sports betting budget and track their spend across all operators, set personal limits and get real visibility into their spending habits.
9% Of Players said ‘no’
FIGURE 3: PLAYER WILLINGNESS TO USE A BUDGET
Notably, 44% of players said they would definitely use such a tool, and another 47% said they might, depending on the features. So this isn’t about responsible
44% Of Players said ‘yes’ When asked if players would use a budgeting tool:
47% Of Players said ‘they might’
9% Of Players said ‘no’
Figure 3: Player willingness to use a budgeting tool
Figure 2: Top deposit motivators
In focus: Neosurf
With Neosurf recently celebrating launches in Switzerland, Mexico and the US, Global CEO Andrea McGeachin explains how a regionally focused approach, and a commitment to doing things differently, is helping the company’s digital wallet unlock growth for partners across the globe
We imagined a payments company that does things differently – and so we built our culture, products and services differently than our competitors. Not just a company that facilitates transactions, but one that understands its responsibility within the wider gambling industry. One that views every payment not just as a functional necessity, but as a vital touchpoint that can boost customer satisfaction and drive operator retention.
At Neosurf, we think globally and act locally. Our payment solutions are flexibly configured to meet the specific requirements of each country we serve, ensuring we can adhere to local regulations and support regional user preferences without reinventing the wheel. We don’t do things by half measures either –when we enter a new territory, it’s only after we’ve done the groundwork: sitting down with players, operators and regulators to understand the market dynamics and tailor the user experience accordingly.
From commissioning in-depth studies into
betting behaviour in the US to appreciating the role that superstitions and deep-seated cultural beliefs play in Latin America, the first step for us is always to get to know our audience. From there, we can start building a picture of precisely where customers are being underserved and help our partners find ways to accommodate them better, while also taking into account any legislative hurdles that may be preventing them from doing so.
For example, our recent launch in Switzerland was driven by our insight into an underserved segment: cash players who need a smarter, more consistent user experience. Local AML rules restrict how much can be deposited via a single payment method annually, which can suddenly disrupt a player’s ability to transact. We designed our approach to ensure these players can continue using our product seamlessly on their chosen operators, without interruptions caused by limit-based stoppages.
Over in the US, meanwhile, we recently conducted in-depth research to better
“The iGaming Digital wallet that’s thinking globally, acting locally”
understand players’ betting behaviour and payment habits – and to hear directly what they want from their payment experience (you can see more on this on pages 2829). The results offered valuable insight into player priorities. For instance, 28% of users deposit weekly, while 25% withdraw weekly, signalling how frequent and habitual payments have become for many.
Perhaps even more telling: nearly 90% of players said they would either definitely or potentially use a unified dashboard to help them budget and stay on top of their spending. The message was clear – players are actively looking for tools that support better control, clearer visibility and less friction.
That’s exactly what we’ve built into our digital wallet. It’s designed to offer a seamless payments experience with features that help players manage their money responsibly –without sacrificing convenience or speed.
We’ll be diving deeper into these findings and wider industry trends in an upcoming webinar hosted by myself and Sue Page, our Americas CEO. It’s a chance to take the conversation even further and share how insights like these are shaping the future of payments in the region.
By investing ourselves in customer journeys and ensuring they have everything they need to gamble responsibly, Neosurf actively contributes to creating a safer online environment where players feel supported and operators can thrive. We see ourselves not just as another payments company, but as a true partner for strategic growth – and a key part of that has always been putting ourselves in front of the right people in the right markets and finding out where the challenges lie.
It’s through these ongoing conversations with customers, operators, compliance teams and local regulators that Neosurf has continued to open doors for its partners around the globe. We’re already live in 31 countries spread across five continents worldwide – and with further expansion plans still to come, you can bet we’ll be taking them to even more places before 2025 is finished!
Andrea McGeachin, Global CEO, Neosurf
Predictive transparency
Alan Vey, Co-Founder of prediction market Galactic, sits down with Gambling Insider to discuss events futures in the context of gambling and how blockchain is changing the game for user safety
The gambling industry has always been a market of buzzwords; Brazil, sweepstakes, personalisation, AI. You name it – the list goes on. However, one could hazard a guess that never before has one of the hottest topics in the industry been a sector that isn’t actually in the industry.
We’re talking about prediction markets –and they’re red-hot right now. Of course,
nobody can predict the future, but with skyrocketing popularity and some of the big-boy US operators now sniffing around the prediction space, it looks by all accounts that, despite the legislative contention faced by some prediction market operators, the practice is here to stay. Indeed, while prediction markets date back to over 150 years ago when farmers would seek to
minimise their risks by reading the weather via localised markets, the practice’s affiliation with gambling has only recently become solidified following the US Presidential election.
But how does this all relate to the payments space? Well, while some operators in the prediction landscape have been busy fighting with the Commodities Futures
Trading Commission (CFTC) over the technicalities of US law, others have been quietly chipping away to ensure their own compliance is – and will remain – a solid bedrock foundation for growth. How? Blockchain.
Enter Alan Vey, Co-Founder of prediction market Galactic, who explains exactly why this transparent distributed ledger is a match made in heaven for prediction market safety and security. And why it might just have also been the match to light the fuse of prediction markets’ explosive lift-off over the past 12 months.
As a general opening question, how would you de ne prediction markets within the context of gambling?
I think you can say prediction markets and gambling – at their core(s) – are fairly similar from a user’s perspective. You have an opinion about something that you want to express, that is uncertain, and you want to take a position either for or against that position. In an abstract sense, it’s a similar concept. However, I think the most important di erentiating factor is that gambling is a zero-sum game. What I mean by that is the user’s loss is the platform provider’s gain. This is not the case for prediction markets. With prediction markets, preferably everybody wins. From the platform host’s perspective, you’re charging a fee on volume and a fee on winnings, but it doesn’t matter which side the winnings end up being on. In that respect, it’s fundamentally di erent from traditional gambling. Prediction markets are decades old economic theory which have never fully taken o because of the lack of transparency. There’s always been a history of the house trying to get that edge. Now, with blockchain, because everything is so transparent – that just doesn’t happen. Prediction markets really are a way of getting as close to the collective crowd’s intelligence when it comes to truth. Whereas in gambling I think things can be a bit skewed. It is also not a zero-sum game. I think those are the key elements where it di erentiates itself.
What can you tell us about the way blockchain can be used to enhance transparency and fairness in the prediction market space?
Of course, it depends on how you use the technology itself. There are a lot of instances in the world where people say they use blockchain, but they use it in a way where it’s redundant. If used correctly, blockchain technology essentially acts as the engine for the creation of markets, as well as for people taking positions in those markets. It automatically recalculates the odds
“I think Bitcoin’s �1trn+ market cap shows the technology can be secure. It’s about how people use it”
Alan Vey, Co-Founder, Galactic
based on who’s come in, who’s bought yes and who’s bought no (in the binary scenario) and how much liquidity is within that market.
Because the blockchain is fundamentally taking care of that, you can then build systems that are entirely non-custodial –and I don’t think this concept really exists in the world of gambling today. You have a system where the user, at all times, is in control of their own funds. You are really just providing a wrapper around blockchain to enable a better user experience for a user to be able to participate in those prediction markets. The fundamental properties of blockchain for anybody to be aware of is transparency on public blockchains, or even proof of authority blockchains depending on how they are set up.
What that means is, essentially, all transactions can be seen by all market participants and they’re completely immutable. Nobody can change them. Nobody can show you slightly different data or create a spread. Everything is the way you see it, and these are the properties that that really help in creating these prediction models.
Naturally, people who are new to blockchain and crypto often suggest concerns around security and stability. With prediction markets now emerging into the mainstream, what would you say to a potential customer expressing these concerns?
When we talk about security, we have to look at some of the reasons people would think this technology is not secure, right? Maybe let’s start with the biggest – Bitcoin. There has never been a compromise in the fundamentals of Bitcoin technology. If there had been, Bitcoin would be worth zero today. The thing that has been compromised is the user end. When people create online wallets, you must have a password and, unlike your banking app where if you forget your password, you can just reset it, blockchain doesn’t work like that. If you forget your password, you completely lose your money. Or worse yet, somebody else gets your password and transfers your funds somewhere else, because there are no intermediaries. It’s entirely non-custodial and immutable, that money is gone or those tokens are gone forever. The security here doesn’t come down to the fundamental technology
working or not. I think Bitcoin’s $1trn+ market cap shows that the technology can be secure. It’s about how people use it.
So how does this work within the prediction markets space?
If we bring this previous example more tangibly towards our context, the real crux of what we’re talking about is when the users are accessing prediction markets in a non-custodial manner. That means the user is controlling their own passwords to their accounts that have all their funds in them. How do you keep that secure? You don’t want to offer the user experience where somebody has to remember 16 random words to access their password. You want to give people the normal web to experience where they sign in with Google, use their email address and password.
But underneath the hood, you want some clever magic that means that, actually, your email is controlling your wallet on the blockchain. In Galactic’s example, what we have done there is, rather than reinventing the wheel, there’s a concept called embedded wallets from service providers like the one we use, Privy, that have gone through many security audits and have been vetted to make sure they can do their job well. How this happens is via open-
“Without blockchain technology, prediction markets may not have taken off”
source security standards. Open-source security essentially means anybody in the world can read the security code and try to attack it but, because of this, the code must be incredibly robust to survive. Long story short, the code is tried and tested. These are just some of the principles adopted by the companies that are leading the field and are actually able to provide a secure environment.
In what way do you think blockchain has revolutionised life for prediction market operators – and how does this differ from its role in the traditional gambling or sports betting industry, for example?
Without blockchain technology, prediction markets may not have taken off. There have been attempts at this in the past by various platforms that have tried to set up prediction markets, but they never saw much success – typically because they mostly converged on the gambling market. People were trying to monetise them in the same way as gambling and the goal was not complete transparency, which meant as an operator you weren’t able to offer no custody. These are some of the key elements around why prediction markets don’t fall under gambling regulations. If you’re not doing custody, if you have complete transparency, this immutable system, and you are not offering contracts on event outcomes, most lawyers recommend that this industry does not fall under gambling regulations. Without web3, without blockchain technology, it’s just not possible to build a system like that.
In focus: ElenPay
Bitcoin Lightning is powering the future of crypto payments in iGaming
Across the global payments landscape, a wave of innovation is reshaping how value moves. The accelerating adoption of digital assets is forcing businesses to re-evaluate what a payment experience should look like, and players are no longer passive participants in this transformation. From choosing methods that prioritise privacy and speed to demanding real-time withdrawals and mobile- rst interfaces, users are leading the pace of change.
For iGaming operators, staying agile in this fast-moving environment is no longer a matter of convenience, it is critical to their survival. Whether streamlining deposits, reducing decline rates or improving withdrawal experiences, the payment flow has become one of the most decisive stages of the user journey. And nowhere is this transformation more evident than in the rise and success of the Bitcoin Lightning Payments. It is positioning itself as a powerful agent of change, driving growth in emerging models such as sweepstake casinos, transforming how users interact with cryptocurrencies and reshaping how players pay.
IMPROVED UX, HIGHER SPEED AND LOWER FEES
Originally designed as a “store of value,” Bitcoin has proven its resilience and utility over the years. But, as it became clear that users and operators needed to transact more in Bitcoin, the limitations of its native protocol (Layer 1) became evident: Slow settlement times, limited scalability and high fees during network congestion or a result of the asset’s high volatility.
The Lightning Network (LN) is a Layer 2 solution built on top of the Bitcoin blockchain, interacting with its native protocol but not deploying it. It is engineered to solve precisely what limits Bitcoin from becoming an everyday
transaction tool for the ≈ 106 million global Bitcoin users. With instant settlement, negligible fees and seamless wallet interoperability, the Lightning Network transforms Bitcoin into a real-time payment rail. Network fees typically fall below $0.01, reducing operator costs by up to 99% compared to card processing. More importantly, Bitcoin payments through the Lightning Network remove friction for users who expect instant, intuitive payouts and seamlessly adapt to users with different levels of expertise with cryptocurrencies.
BITCOIN DOMINATES THE CRYPTO BETTING ECONOMY
Bitcoin remains the dominant digital currency for iGaming, with 73% of crypto bets placed in BTC. A holding company reported $500m in Bitcoin deposits in 2024 – a significant shift from the industry’s 2019 estimate of $50m. Also, in the US, one Lightning-enabled wallet owned over 53 million active users and processed $75bn in Bitcoin transactions last year. For some online casinos and sweepstakes, US traffic from Lightning-enabled wallets already represents one of their primary revenue streams – and the industry is quickly responding.
UNLOCKING IN-PLAY BETTING AND MASS PAYOUTS
The instant settlements enabled by the Bitcoin Lightning Network seamlessly adapt to new and trending payment needs in the industry. BTC Lightning addresses new trends such as in-play betting – particularly during live sports events – where real-time deposits are essential to keep up with the betting needs of players. Bitcoin Lightning Payments also support microbetting, a growing format where speed and low fees are critical, regardless of the transaction size. Beyond user payments, operators and a liate networks are leveraging
the Lightning Network to automate mass payouts, distributing funds to thousands of worldwide recipients in a single click without the delays or fees of traditional banking systems.
EVOLVING TOWARD LONG-TERM ADOPTION
Lightning is maturing fast. The recent announcement by Tether about the integration of USDT in the Bitcoin Lightning Network is bridging the gap between Bitcoin’s volatility and operators’ demands for price stability. This integration will allow operators to serve both crypto-native and at-pegged audiences and potentially broaden their acquisition strategies to over 75% of global crypto users. All are signals that Lightning will become an essential part of the next-generation payments stack. Regulation also plays a pivotal role in enabling long-term adoption and sustainable business for operators. Forward-thinking payment processors leveraging the Lightning Network and aligning with regulatory standards are becoming strategic partners, enabling operators to scale globally while meeting licensing obligations in key jurisdictions. ElenPay is the company filling this gap.
BITCOIN LIGHTNING PAYMENTS WITH ELENPAY
ElenPay sits at the heart of the Bitcoin Lightning revolution. As a Bitcoin- rst payment processor specialised in the Lightning Network, ElenPay empowers the iGaming ecosystem to o er streamlined onboarding, real-time payouts and automated mass payments at minimal network fees. With robust regulatory expertise and a deep belief in Bitcoin’s future as an everyday transactional tool, the ElenPay team helps platforms harness Lightning’s full potential in the current gambling landscape while scaling their business models.
