Today, we’re catching up with Aleksandra Jeda, Head of Account Management at Croatia’s first fintech company, Aircash, to discuss the latest breakthroughs in online iGaming payments.
Founded in 2015, Aircash is an EU-licensed electronic money institution and the creator of Croatia’s first digital wallet. It is also the country’s only non-banking institution to swing a partnership with heavy-hitters of the finance world, MasterCard.
Read on as we get the inside scoop on how AI is revolutionising iGaming payments and compliance, Aircash’s innovative approach to converting cash users to online payments – and how they can support operators in retaining players and reducing churn.
iGamingFuture’s Head of Content, Curtis Roach, began by asking:
Operators are increasingly challenged to create frictionless registration processes while remaining compliant and secure. How can improvements be made by leveraging new AI-driven solutions?
“With over one million registered users and more than 200,000 points of sales across the EU, Aircash is constantly proving to be a leading fintech company fully focused on its customers’ needs.
“Our customers’ convenience and security drive our product development, and we always prioritise usability to deliver an intuitive and frictionless payment experience. Our user-centric payment platform focuses on minimising complexity without compromising security.
“Using the power of AI, our solution can identify the country and type of ID card used, extract and vectorise facial features, and subsequently match these vectors with the user’s selfie.
“It also conducts rigorous anti-fraud checks, including cutting-edge verification of user liveness, assessing the authenticity of their movements and positions. This streamlines processes and enhances our customer service and support, leading to a superior user experience.
“Our in-house developed verification process is now highly automated, with agent intervention only required for the final decision based on a multitude of checks conducted by the system.
“Machine learning and AI methodologies have significantly improved the accuracy and efficiency of each stage in the verification workflow. For instance, user video verification has been accelerated using various artificial intelligence models in computer vision and speech.
“Deep convolutional neural networks specialised in computer vision enable automatic data extraction from personal documents and user facial analysis. Facial and document authenticity is verified through additional models that perform ‘liveness detection.’
“And speech analysis is automated using a deep convolutional transformer model that supports multiple languages.
“The entire system verifies over 20 elements, including checks on each field of text extracted from documents, facial and document liveness, speech, and more.”
Trust and privacy are critical elements of successfully onboarding a depositing customer. How can using products such as those provided by Aircash help operators give their players peace of mind?
“We aim to provide a solution that will benefit the operator and their customers in as many ways as possible.
“For operators, we help them attract a specific group of customers who feel comfortable using cash online, providing a flexible and EU-compliant service.
“For customers, we deliver a secure and private financial product that creates a completely safe environment, enabling them to use Aircash for all types of daily monetary transactions.
“With all these factors in mind, we introduce our super app for a wide range of payments.
“The Aircash app can be topped up using cash, cards, and instant banking. Customers can obtain up to five Aircash Mastercards to use in any online or offline store or to withdraw funds at the nearest ATM.
“Using the Aircash app Marketplace, customers can directly deposit money to their favourite operators, purchase EU vignettes or Telecom vouchers, pay for parking, and more.
“By combining AI-driven features with advanced fraud detection mechanisms, we ensure that every user interaction is secure, efficient, and fully compliant with industry standards. Furthermore, we understand that the landscape of regulatory requirements, especially in the iGaming industry, is constantly evolving.
“To stay ahead in this dynamic environment, our compliance team is exceptionally knowledgeable. Our experts have a deep understanding of regulatory intricacies and are continually updated on the latest legal and security standards. This diligence ensures that our services remain at the forefront of regulatory compliance.
“Responsible gaming is also integral to our approach. We have developed specific features that allow our partners to meet local regulators’ requirements, such as data exchange, which we provide in regulated markets like Germany and Greece.
“Our system is flexible, allowing us to create bespoke solutions for setting limits and adapting to changing requirements. Our commitment to user security goes beyond financial transactions; it creates an ecosystem that values the health and responsible choices of our users.”
There is still a huge demand from cash customers who want the online gaming experience. This is a significant potential customer base that many operators are yet to take full advantage of. Why is it so important for operators to attract cash customers, and how can they best do this?
“Aircash’s innovative solution includes a digital mobile wallet, which offers instant deposits, withdrawals, payments, and money transfers; a one-click prepaid card through the Aircash app; and A-bon, a printed e-voucher for easy and secure online purchases using a 16-digit PIN code.
“The idea behind the Aircash app was to digitalise cash and provide migrants and expats in the EU access to financial products. Recognising that many people still prefer cash for offline and online transactions, the founders created a cash-based mobile app that brings users convenience, trust, and privacy.
“Our goal is to digitalise cash in the most technologically advanced and secure manner by offering a cutting-edge product that enables customers to use their money online efficiently and securely.
“What makes Aircash unique and appealing to cash customers is the perfect combination of services: our extensive distribution network, the mobile app and innovative Marketplace, and the Aircash Mastercard. These components create an outstanding experience for managing cash online and offline.”
“Aircash Marketplace, integrated within the Aircash mobile wallet, features a one-stop payment solution for parking, transport, entertainment and gaming, events, utilities, and telecoms. With Aircash, virtual money becomes physical in seconds and vice versa. Aircash has also recently become the principal issuer of the world’s leading card scheme and started issuing cards.”
Player churn is a continual challenge for iGaming operators. How can they best leverage co-marketing opportunities with services like Aircash to help increase retention and reactivation rates?
“Our innovative approach is based on adding value to our Aircash services. We listened to our partners, identified their pain points, and adapted our product to help them maximise their revenues.
“We understand the impact of gamification in the industry, and we focus on delivering promotional mechanisms that are innovative and attractive for players and can be used in collaboration with our partners.
“We also support our partners in their efforts to retain and reactivate their customers by running co-marketing activities that incentivise customers to get back online and have some fun.”
Editor’s Note:
At fintech companies like Aircash, AI is transforming security and compliance.
Behind the scenes sophisticated, multi-layered, automated systems identify and verify users, ensuring that consumers are who they claim to be by utilising techniques like “liveness,” voice recognition and video analysis.
This seamless process achieves two goals for gambling operators: meeting compliance requirements and reducing user friction during sign-up.
Aircash’s innovative products, including a digital wallet, cash-to-voucher system, and Mastercard offerings, aim to capture the entire payments market but have a particular focus on converting cash users by providing them with convenient and secure ways to digitise their cash.
When it comes to tackling player churn Aircash believes the solution lies in adding extra value to encourage repeat engagement.
According to Aleksandra, Aircash promises its partners a more holistic approach, whether that’s through supporting enticing promotions or collaborative marketing initiatives.
