European-focused payment solutions provider OKTO announced this week it entered into a strategic partnership with the European Casino Association (ECA) to affirm its interest to become the leader in the gambling and entertainment space.
Commitment to Innovation and Digitization
The strategic agreement between OKTO and the industry representative body for all national associations and individual operators of licensed land-based casinos in Europe demonstrates the commitment of the payments provider to drive innovation and digitization.
Commenting on the partnership, Simon Dorsen, chief commercial officer at OKTO, outlined the company’s commitment to “working with like-minded” organizations such as the ECA which can exert their influence on digital payments, one of the sectors of the gambling eco-system that is undergoing through significant development at the moment, raising the requirements and demand for innovative solutions to meet the needs of regulators, merchants and consumers.
“This partnership demonstrates OKTO’s desire to collaborate with industry experts to drive innovation and bring the best payment experiences to users.”
Simon Dorsen, CCO, OKTO
The agreement will allow OKTO to leverage its expertise in digital payments and provide the association and all of its approximately 900 casino members with advice and thought leadership to help them deliver the best possible digital payments experience for their customers.
Casino Operations at the Core of ECA
ECA members, spread across 28 European countries and with over 70,000 employees, make the association one of the gaming industry’s most respected international trade bodies, and Dorsen could not wait to start sharing and exchanging knowledge with other leaders to collectively drive the industry forward for the benefit of its stakeholders.
Hermann Pamminger, Secretary-General of ECA, hailed the new strategic partner, outlining that innovations related to casino operations comprise an essential part of the association’s role, operating as an information network for its members and in collaboration with the institutions of the EU upon initiatives that can re-shape the land-based casino sector in Europe.
“The announced partnership with OKTO provides our members with the very latest insights and developments regarding digital payments and digitalisation. It will help operators to understand and respond to requirements set out by industry regulators and, most importantly, how they relate to the genuine and effective responsible gambling frameworks implemented by duly licensed operators.”
Hermann Pamminger, Secretary General, ECA
OKTO’s expertise in the field of digital payment solutions was emphasized recently when the fintech entered into agreements with Spanish gaming operators Tecnausa and Codere.
In February, the multinational gaming group Codere signed deal with the payment provider to implement the OKTO.Wallet payment app and platform to its gaming machines and retail betting outlet holdings to enable players to quickly deposit and withdraw funds, as well as the operator to decrease handling of cash.
Following in the footsteps of Codere, Spain’s leading management system for arcades Tecnausa teamed up with OKTO in March for the deployment of the OKTO.Wallet solution for the 38,000 gaming machines across gaming halls in the country connected by the management system.