If you are like me, you cringe a little when someone says they think our industry is ready to embrace digital payments and cashless wagering. We’ve heard it many times in the past, and it turns out we weren’t actually ready… until now. Industry observers and industry participants are more optimistic now than at any time in the past, even with the false starts, and this consensus is becoming momentum for change.
Let’s discuss why this time may finally be the right time, and how this may happen. For definition’s sake, I consider “payments modernization” to be the holistic approach to customer transactions at casinos, allowing patrons on a casino floor to access funds and wager without needing to bring cash to the casino or access cash on site (say through an ATM machine). I am also referring to larger initiatives that would see these payment methods rolled out across other areas of integrated resorts (and to the extent those already exist, to “unify” those in a seamless manner) and linked to digital wallets (for online gaming and sports betting) and loyalty applications.