The University of Nevada Las Vegas, through its International Gaming Institute, launched the IGI Payments Collaborative, designed to analyze the industry shift to cashless wagering. The Collaborative has partnered with payment technology and software providers Sightline Payments and Global Payments Gaming Solutions.
Nodding to the International Center for Responsible Gaming, formerly the National Center for Responsible Gaming, the Collaborative seeks to provide a scientific, data-driven foundation for policymakers and regulators to make sound decisions in the future.
“This Collaborative will combine IGI’s experience in peer-reviewed science with our funders’ existing technological, operational, and marketplace strengths to form a leadership position on responsible gaming policy, which in turn will be a crucial consideration in any forthcoming cashless wagering conversations,” said Dr. Bo Bernhard, executive director, UNLV IGI.
Global Payments Gaming Solutions will provide expertise needed to drive responsible gaming efforts, said company President, Christopher Justice. “Our team works to develop industry-leading cashless gaming solutions to support patrons and their need to track, manage, and control funds to play responsibly.”
Omer Sattar, executive vice president & co-founder, Sightline Payments, said, “As the world starts to seamlessly blend the digital with the physical, it’s essential that we collectively evolve our tools, technology, and thinking to shape the future.”
Very little scientific research exists on actual customer behavior when cashless systems are deployed, said Alan Feldman, Distinguished Fellow in Responsible Gaming, UNLV IGI. “As a result, policies can be based on worries or beliefs rather than facts and scientific methodologies. It is thus important to evaluate and study the potential unintended consequences of these current policies in order to inform future RG policy.”
