All Onboard – How to Maximise Your iGaming FTDs

We spoke with Adam Doyle, Head of Gaming for LexisNexis Risk Solutions to get his perspective on the best way to navigate the current and expected iGaming landscape, increasing FTDs and ultimately maximising the customer journey.

KYC is an integral part of player onboarding and general compliance. However, if reg forms are too extensive, the risk of player drop out is heightened. What can operators do to find the perfect balance?

“Gone are the days of traditional KYC – there is far much focus on customer lifecycle; balancing friction with doing the right thing. General acquisition costs run into the high hundreds of pounds per customer, so the onboarding experience is key to a sustainable business.

“I myself have walked out of onboarding processes due to the sometimes-extensive information required, and this doesn’t just apply to the gambling space. Operators have been known to request pay slips, even for low-value bets.

“Technology is the key to filling in the gaps and maintaining the user experience both during onboarding and throughout the player lifecycle. Making decisions using multiple data sources automating the customer journey waterfalling between suppliers to improve match rates is a step in the right direction.”

The Gambling Act Review is soon to be released. What impact do you expect this to have on the iGaming industry going forward? Is there a risk of over-regulation or is a heavier focus on compliance exactly what the industry needs?

“The UK has one of, if not the, most regulated gambling industries in the world. Regulation is very important to maintaining the reputation and longevity of our industry. It’s great the UKGC is showing significant interest in things like affordability checks and monitoring for responsible gambling purposes.

“Multiple markets around the world seem to be following suit as governments look to the UKGC, and other western European regulators, as the model for a safe and fun gambling experience.”

Many operators have a multitude of processes such as payments, KYC, CRM and risk scoring all happening in silo. Why is it so important to bring all of these elements together in one tool? How can this benefit the operator and the wider industry going forward?

“Like any modern business, operators would have a well-developed and, in some places, complicated tech stack – comprising of multiple third-party systems and services, and internally developed technology.

“Without one unifying tool, building comprehensive safe gambling processes can be a challenge, and it is near impossible to gain a single view over a customer or deliver the required data and justification during audits.

“In the past, operators have invested significant sums on internal development resources to comply with the latest regulation only to have these goal posts moved soon after.

“An orchestration platform like LexisNexis® RiskNarrative™ solves a large part of this problem – with a lot of the integration and development work already done delivering multiple services via one API. This not only helps operators reduce the cost of compliance but provides a holistic view across the customer journey.”

Implementing new, innovative technologies to combat problem gambling and financial crime effectively can often require a significant commitment of resources. Does this mean only large companies with bigger budgets can take full advantage of products such as RiskNarrative? Are there equally effective solutions available for smaller operators with fewer resources?

“Operators have expended huge sums to implement in-house, developed responsible gambling and player monitoring systems.

“With RiskNarrative™, the initial price point is certainly accessible by even the smallest start-up operators. We often work closely with new, innovative start-ups to support in their growth. Helping them to implement robust responsible gambling processes from the start.

“Additionally, the accessible price point of RiskNarrative enables existing operators to spin up a compliant customer journey very quickly in a new, regulated market. We love that we can cater to everyone.”

Editors’ Note:

As the Gambling Act Review looms, the UKGC is showing significant interest in things like affordability checks and monitoring for responsible gambling purposes. But with an increasingly fragmented market, without one unifying tool, building comprehensive safe gambling processes can be a challenge. Products such as LexisNexis RiskNarrative is perfect for creating a singular view and ensuring sustained and compliant customer engagement for the industry, regardless of the regulatory changes we expect to see in the future.