Compliance Updates

Elys Game Technology and Grand Central Announce License Approval in Washington

Published

3 years ago

September 3, 2021

Elys Game Technology, an interactive gaming and sports betting technology company, and Grand Central LLC, an independently owned operator of the Grand Central Restaurant & Bar located in the Adams Morgan area of Washington, announced the grant by the District of Columbia’s Office of Lottery and Gaming (OLG) of a Class B Operator license to Grand Central to operate a sportsbook within the Grand Central Restaurant & Bar and of a provisional Class B Standard Management Services Provider License to Elys in conjunction with management services to be provided to Grand Central.

The Grand Central venue will offer sports betting alongside food and beverages providing a unique customer experience and is believed to be the first sportsbook of its kind to be operated within an independently owned business establishment in the US. The Class B license allows a full-service sportsbook with no restrictions on maximum bets to be wagered and where all winnings can be redeemed on-site.

Elys will provide Grand Central with the turn-key retail betting solution on POS and kiosk hardware as well as managed services to operate the sportsbook, including back-office and business intelligence, odds and event offerings, risk management and trading services, while both Elys and Grand Central will collaborate on customer-engagement campaigns, marketing, and any co-branding ventures. To allow sufficient time for staff training and hardware installation, it is expected that wagering on sports will be offered at Grand Central in or around October 2021 with the on-premise mobile app to be launched in 2022.

“We have been a part of the vibrant Adams Morgan neighborhood since Grand Central opened in 2007. We are looking forward to offering our customers an extraordinary experience to wager on their favorite teams while enjoying our signature dishes and beverages for lunch, dinner or gathering for team events and special games or even just dropping in to place a wager. We are very honored to have been approved as the first Class B licensed operator by the DC Office of Lottery and Gaming and believe that our establishment will serve as a showcase example for this operational model and a key role in the economic growth of this rooted residential and commercial neighborhood, as well as the greater DC area,” Brian Vasile, owner of Grand Central, said.

“We are absolutely thrilled to be granted our first US-based sports wagering license and are looking forward to launching our Elys Gameboard U.S. platform at Grand Central Restaurant & Bar, in Washington, DC. We also wish to recognise Brian Vasile, his partners and staff who worked tirelessly with our engineering team housed within our group technology subsidiary, Odissea, and our U.S. operations team to achieve this significant accomplishment,” Michele Ciavarella, Executive Chairman of Elys, said.

“For ages, sports events and championship games have been consumed and enjoyed the most in restaurants and bars, and we believe that the unique Class B classification established by the DC Office of Lottery and Gaming will pioneer an entirely new and exciting vertical where sports wagering could elevate the dining and gathering experience at bars and restaurants throughout North America. We also believe that this model could be adopted across multiple states to support local and growing businesses, and that Grand Central can become the quintessential model for operating a sportsbook within a business that is accessible by all fans of sports.”

Ciavarella continued: “With a low-cost of deployment and high scalability, our leading-edge micro-services technology is perfectly suited to operate sportsbooks in the massive network of small businesses across Canada and the U.S., and we believe small businesses could be a major contributor to local and regional economic development for years to come. The addition of US Bookmaking is expected to serve a key role in the product offering and bookmaking at Grand Central, as well as the potentially rapid expansion expected by Elys at small businesses across the country.”

Elys is operational in approximately 1200 venues throughout Italy, in both online and retail channels and is now live in 5 states with 6 tribal casinos and a restaurant bar. The Company is planning to process applications to offer sports wagering through its leading-edge betting platform to large and small casinos and independent business venues in the US and Canada representing one of the most exciting long-term growth opportunities for Elys. The provisional Standard Management Services Provider License granted to the Company expires August 26, 2022.

Up Next

BetMGM Launches Mobile Sports Betting in Wyoming

Don't Miss

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Name Esports Entertainment Group as Its Official Esports Tournament Platform in Multi-Year Deal

Compliance Updates

Spinomenal is now a registered provider in Peru

Published

15 hours ago

May 7, 2024

Adrienn Sarkany

Spinomenal, the leading iGaming content provider, has expanded its Latin American presence by registering as a service provider in Peru. The approval from Peru’s Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (MINCETUR) allows Spinomenal to provide its casino titles to the country’s locally licensed operators.

With Peru’s recent introduction of new gaming regulations, the iGaming environment is set for an exciting transformation. Spinomenal is thrilled to be part of this dynamic evolution, offering our state-of-the-art gaming solutions to energise and enhance the gaming experience within Peru’s thriving iGaming community.

Peruvian players will now be able to enjoy Spinomenal’s popular portfolio of games and some of the gems available are Majestic King and Demi Gods V.

Spinomenal CO-CEO, Lior Shvartz commented: “Latin America continues to be a key region for us and we’re proud to now be able to offer our titles within the regulated Peruvian market. Games have been hand-picked for Peruvians based on localised knowledge of player preferences gained by our experience in the market prior to the new regulation.”

Compliance Updates

Play’n GO breaks new ground with entrance into third Argentinian province

Published

6 days ago

May 2, 2024

Zoltan Tundik

Swedish gaming giants’ games now available in the province of Córdoba’s newly regulated market

Play’n GO, the world’s leading casino entertainment provider, has today announced their expansion into yet another new regulated market, as the Swedish gaming giant has agreed a partnership with Betsson in the province of Córdoba, Argentina.

Argentina is currently in a process of regulation for online gaming purposes on a province-by-province basis, and the partnership with Betsson sees Play’n GO enter yet another regulated market, keeping up the momentum from 2023 that saw the company expand its global reach.

This announcement sees Betsson’s players in Córdoba gain access to Play’n GO’s entire catalogue of games, including classics such as Book of Dead, Reactoonz, and Moon Princess.

This announcement is a signal of intent from Play’n GO, who reiterate their commitment to be present in every regulated market in the world.

Michele Stefanelli, Sales Leader, LATAM and Southern Europe, Play’n GO said: “Our first foray into a new region is always exciting for us, and we’re looking forward to a successful partnership with Betsson in Córdoba. Players around the world, and especially in the LATAM region, have already shown their fondness for our content, and we’re quietly confident that this new region will be no different. We are on record with our commitment to a safe, regulated industry, and we’re very pleased to see that approach rolled out globally by lawmakers and operators alike.”

Maximiliano Bellio, Managing Director Betsson Argentina, added: “We’re pleased to welcome Play’n GO to the Betsson family here in the Córdoba region, and we look forward to many years of success together. Like Play’n GO, Betsson is committed to a sustainable industry model, so this partnership makes perfect sense for both parties. We’re sure our players will be as excited as we are once they start playing these games that have proven so popular around the world, so let’s get started.”

Play’n GO’s games are already available in the autonomous city of Buenos Aires and Buenos Aires Province within Argentina’s federal system.

Compliance Updates

OpenBet bolsters compliance technologies with the launch of geolocation product, OpenBet Locator™, powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Published

6 days ago

May 2, 2024

Zoltan Tundik

OpenBet Locator™ provides a highly flexible, low latency and scalable alternative for global betting and gaming marketplace

OpenBet, a leading content, platform and service provider to the global betting industry, has bolstered its modular product portfolio with the launch of its new flexible and scalable geolocation product – OpenBet Locator™.

Built on the backbone of Amazon Web Services (AWS), OpenBet’s strategic cloud provider, OpenBet Locator™ is a low latency solution that enables operators worldwide to locate, promote to, and monitor customers, remaining fully compliant with regulatory requirements.

The technology strengthens OpenBet’s reputation for market-leading player protection and compliance following the company’s acquisition of Neccton in 2023. With OpenBet’s regulatory reach and multiple licenses, brands will be able to ensure seamless and swift integration of its trusted and compliant technology into their ecosystem.

Initially targeting the North American market, the solution will feature a number of components, such as:

Fully flexible geo-fence management and high precision location tracking
Fraud prevention combined with real-time virtual private network (VPN) and location spoofing detection
Player targeting for customer relationship management (CRM), data analysis and in-venue promotions
Multi-tenanted solution that supports travelling wallet
Easy and flexible configuration options to streamline business operations workflows

The product is underpinned by OpenBet’s unrivalled expertise within the global betting industry and is designed to remove the friction of geolocation to the end-customer’s onboarding process.

Jordan Levin, CEO of OpenBet, said: “Introducing OpenBet Locator™ is an exciting move for us and takes our modular product offering to a new level. Built in-house and leveraging AWS technology, we have developed a strong proposition that can be tailored to meet unique business needs.

“As a pioneer within the global sports betting arena for over 25 years, we have an in-depth understanding of the challenges and opportunities operators face within highly regulated markets. OpenBet Locator™ is a scalable, compliant and dependable geolocation solution that removes the barriers to operators’ success.”