After years marked by discussion, research, and limited implementation, the gaming industry is embracing cashless gaming and digital payment processing systems at an accelerated pace.
Joe Pappano, the recently installed CEO of Las Vegas-based Sightline Payments, says the explanation is three-fold.
The expansion of digital gaming – both online casino and sports wagering – has made cashless payment technology an essential component of the growing market. Also, the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent health and safety protocols for land-based casinos to reopen last year “became an accelerator” that pushed land-based casino operators to look at new systems for moving payments from customers to gaming floors.
Sightline Payments CEO Joe Pappano
But it’s the combination of both worlds, Pappano said, that is bringing about an aggressive change.
“The third item is a true omni-channel approach that has one single player identity for both sides,” said Pappano, who joined Sightline in July after nearly 30 years in the payment processing business.
He said the key factor is allowing cashless payment technology on the casino floor in the same fashion that it’s found on the non-gaming side of the integrated resort.
“Moving money in and out in a very seamless way is the goal,” Pappano said.
The American Gaming Association has advocated since 2019 for the casino industry to adopt cashless or digital payment solutions to help modernize the industry.
In the past year, spurred on by the COVID-19 pandemic, several changes have taken place. Regulators in Nevada and Pennsylvania approved new rules to permit digital payments in their casinos, and New Jersey, Indiana, and Iowa are expected to follow along.
Traditional gaming equipment providers, including Everi Holdings and International Game Technology, have unveiled digital wallets that are being used on casino floors in tribal gaming markets and Nevada. Scientific Games expanded its electronic table games business and also testing a mobile wallet product.
Pappano said the casino industry will continue to see “more investment and increased evolution” of digital payment systems in response to AGA research last year. A study found that 57 percent of casino customers want the option for digital or contactless payments on the gaming floor. Some 59 percent of casino visitors said in the study they are less likely to use cash in their everyday lives because of COVID-19.
In December, Sightline Payments said it received a “strategic investment” from Searchlight Capital Partners that established a post-money valuation of $525 million for the company.
Earlier this month, Sightline announced a strategic partnership with Shift4 Payments to jointly develop online gaming and sports betting payment systems for casinos and sports venues. The goal is a product that merges Sightline’s online wagering system with Shift4’s payment processing technology.
Also, Sightline is partnering with Boyd Gaming and Aristocrat Technologies on a cashless wagering platform for Blue Chip Casino in Indiana. The system ties into Blue Chip’s player loyalty program.
“A mobile-centric payments ecosystem that works across all channels and verticals is the future of all regulated gaming in the United States,” Pappano said.
Back in 2015, Pappano said he worked on the payment processing side of the interstate online poker agreement between Nevada and Delaware that was eventually joined by New Jersey.
“Building a framework that allows convergence for payments and gaming has been an important effort,” he said.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
