Bringing players on board to a cashless environment while also ensuring that regulators are able to keep up with the trends will be essential in the role that it plays in gaming. A top panel of experts discusses the strong advantages cashless can play – for both operators and players, in ensuring responsible gaming and sustainable customers – while noting that not every cashless avenue has to be based on an app.
00:50 – Tracey Winslow, Transact – introduction
01:26 – John Van Waard, IGT – introduction
02:12 – Nick Hill, nChain – introduction
03:20 – Paul Foster, Crucial Compliance – introduction
04:30 – Sports betting legalization in more regions of the US means getting more used to the idea of operating in a cashless environment. Major barrier is the ease of using the technology has not been proven yet. Player reluctance in funding their digital wallets.
07:40 – Strong change in discussion over cashless in Australia. Had experienced resistance before from regulators – now after certain problems of negligence regulators are now supporting it and there’s resistance from operators.
IGT polls in Australia found that less than 10 percent preferred cash.
11:39 – Premium players in Asia typically are already using cashless. Cashless is not just a digital wallet.
12:18 – Compliance is driving cashless adoption. Every casino wants sustainable players. Responsible gaming and sustainable gambling are boosted by cashless, means that you can stop players from gambling easily.
14:30 – It’s all about engaging with existing technology. There’s a demographic which has virtually never used cash – how to encourage them into a traditional casino. Using cashless can provide an omnichannel solution – all the same wallet, all the same casino currency you’re transacting with in the property. Can start to implement behavior monitoring, source of funds, affordability checks, AML – gives a better feeling for the player.
17:18 – Can this cashless tech be improved? Yes. Will see some consolidation. Overabundance of apps is problematic, want an easy way to access the tech that is not a barrier to the player. From US perspective, see it as both TITO and cashless for some time to come.
18:40 – Cashless isn’t only just apps. There are RFID chips – can already be used, there are magnetic stripe card in gaming machines, definition of cashless is merely without cash.
20:30 – Will attempt to keep up with speed of technology, will be major challenge for regulators. Technology companies are moving forward so quickly. Can protect players a lot more using tech even available today.
22:12 – Keeping up is dependent on nexus event – such as what happened in Australia (Crown, Star). Innovation is being slowed by regulation until such a nexus event happens.
24:00 – Tech already exists, don’t have the middleware to put it all together. No one knows what the end results exactly has to be. In the Philippines, the conversations are happening at the highest level, leading to proof of concepts. Can then take that to other markets and adapt it.
25:45 – Are models out there for multi-property implementation of cashless – such as in Sweden. Need something that’s now state-owned, a middleware layer, with someone who owns the treasury.
26:51 – From the operators’ point of view – one question is how to reward and instill player loyalty in uncarded players. Unless it’s a regulatory push, there’s a significant amount of player resistance to even becoming a carded player.
