Industry News

Europe’s gambling culture is slowly fading away

Published

6 years ago

March 17, 2020

Europe is often regarded as the cultural hotspot of the world. It is home to some of the world’s most celebrated artists, enchanting cities and phenomenons. Countries like France, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom attract more tourists than any other part of the world. Naturally, such big numbers of international visitors travel long hours for a reason. These countries offer scenarios and landmarks that can not be seen elsewhere.

Over time, the cultural heritage and traditions well-hidden in the depth of the continent made it one of the richest corners of the world. Every period of its history is still reflected on old city walls and once nearly devastated cathedrals. This surely is what attracts so many people from all across the globe. Besides, Europe is the financial center of the world. With hundreds of millions of residents, some of the biggest corporations are headquartered in major financial hubs of Europe.

All of these factors led to the development of a powerful gambling industry which is widely acknowledged as one of the best globally. Cities like Monaco and Nice on the french riviera are modern meccas for gamblers from all around the world. Venues in such cities offer luxury services, sparkling environments and big chances of winning.

Despite Europe’s love for luxury, the continent is not lagging behind in any niche of gambling. The economical development of Eastern and Central Europe saw a rising number of capitals being turned into gambling heavens. Cities like Prague, Warsaw, and Kyiv are some of the top destinations for budget gamblers. They particularly attract crowds from western Europe, where casinos are more sophisticated and gambling, as well as other means of entertainment, is related to higher costs.

All in all, the continent of Europe has developed a well-established gambling culture in almost every nation. Players can find desired venues within any price range in European countries. However, the culture is slowly disappearing amid the spread of online gambling platforms. Recommendations and overall feedback from the community, especially the ones outlined in the Playamo casino review along with others clearly suggest that modern gambling enthusiasts are turning towards online casinos.

At first glance, it is difficult to understand why online gambling is gradually overtaking physical venues across the continent. The thing is that young people, as well as those with high incomes but limited time due to work now prefer more convenient options. For many, getting to the casino is too time-consuming and inefficient. Thus, an increasing number of people choose to enjoy their beloved activity from home.

Moreover, online casinos are popping up faster than physical ones. As a result, the competition between them is higher leading to better offers for customers. Bonuses and free spins are provided for new players by many online gambling platforms. Under such circumstances, it is obvious that many people choose to get online rather than pay a visit to their local casino.

This trend is also affecting the income of casinos, particularly in Eastern Europe. Monaco, London and other grand meccas of gambling will keep having enormous numbers of visitors unlike those located in Prague or Budapest. Their revenues are highly dependant on visitors from other European nations, as well as overseas travelers. As online gambling opportunities arise in almost all corners of the world, some less known venues in Europe are left without visitors.

Furthermore, there is a new wave of legislative changes across the continent that is having a major impact on the industry. Laws are being made stricter in some central and eastern European nations amid the global liberalization of the field. One example is the Czech Republic which recently tightened its rules on gambling. Country’s capital Prague remains a major gambling industry hub but its status in the future is uncertain.

Other countries like Belgium are also making legislation against gambling more comprehensive. None of the countries are banning casinos altogether, however, the added pressure caused by new laws is making maintenance and operation of physical venues more expensive than ever before. Amid such a crisis, online platforms are yet again taking the opportunity, spreading their services into new markets in Europe and beyond.

Despite the views about gambling, it undoubtedly is an important part of European culture. Far before Las Vegas would arise across the Atlantic in Nevada, Europe was already establishing its first formal gambling venues. After its beginning in the 17th century, the industry has become associated with many cities and towns in Europe. Some of them are solely dependant on revenues generated by casinos. Thus, the disappearance of Europe’s gambling culture can only be seen as a big loss for the continent.

Related Topics:Europe Europe's gambling culture Playamo casino

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AI

Despite AI’s Rise, Fraud Teams Keep Growing — SEON 2026 Report

Published

4 days ago

March 4, 2026

Wladimir P.

despite-ai’s-rise,-fraud-teams-keep-growing-—-seon-2026-report

SEON, the command centre for immediate Fraud Prevention and AML Compliance, has unveiled AI Reality Check: 2026 Fraud & AML Leaders Report, the second iteration of its sector research, derived from a worldwide survey of 1,010 leaders in fraud, risk, and compliance spanning payments, fintech, financial services, retail, eCommerce, and gaming.

The figures reveal an unforeseen narrative: AI is ubiquitous, yet operations are not becoming easier to manage. Currently, 98% of organizations utilize AI in fraud and AML processes, with 95% expressing confidence in its effectiveness; meanwhile, headcount plans rose from 88% to 94% year-over-year, and 83% anticipate budget increases in 2026.

Complexity Is Surpassing Automation

AI has not lessened the workload — it has revealed the extent of work that has always existed. Fraud losses are increasingly approaching revenue growth, threats are advancing more rapidly, and disjointed systems restrict the true potential of AI at scale. Key year-over-year shift:

Leadership’s confidence in their teams’ performance is lagging. The number of leaders who disagreed with the statement, “fraud losses are growing faster than revenue,” dropped by almost 40% from the previous year

Inside the Numbers:

AI is baseline, not experimental

98% already integrate AI into daily workflows (only 2% still planning)
95% are confident AI can detect and prevent fraud (52% very confident)
Top use case: AI/ML for transaction monitoring (30%)

Fraud and AML investment keeps climbing

83% expect fraud/AML budgets to increase in 2026
94% plan to add at least one full-time hire (up from 88% in 2025)
85% plan to add a vendor, 49% plan to replace one

Fragmentation is the bottleneck

95% claim “some integration” between fraud and AML systems
Only 47% run fully integrated workflows; the rest rely on partial connections
80% say getting a unified view of data is challenging

For many, time-to-value remains slow

Only 10% go live in under two weeks
38% take 1–3 months, 24% take 4+ months
When implementations run long, top impacts include increased costs (52%) and prolonged fraud exposure (47%)

Teams are growing, not shrinking

94% plan to increase headcount despite automation gains
85% see AI agents as support/augmentation, not replacement (only 12% see eventual replacement)

Top fraud threats reported:

Account takeovers: 26%
Promo/discount abuse: 18%
Return fraud: 18%

“Fraud and financial crime were supposed to become more manageable as AI matured,” said Tamas Kadar, CEO and co-founder, SEON. “Instead, 2026 is the year leaders are confronting a more complicated reality. AI adoption is real, confidence is high, but the scale and pace of fraud — compounded by fragmented systems — continue to drive increased investment rather than reduced overhead. The bottleneck is no longer whether AI works. It’s everything around it: disconnected data, siloed teams, slow implementations. The organisations that pull ahead will be the ones that unify fraud and AML intelligence, shorten the distance between threats and controls, and treat integration as strategy, not plumbing.”

Fast-Growing Companies Invest in Integration Early

Organisations growing 51%+ are nearly twice as likely as slower peers to report that achieving unified visibility is “not very challenging.” They treat integration as infrastructure, not an IT project.

What’s Next: From “Does AI Work?” to “Can We Trust It?”

With adoption near-universal, the conversation is shifting to governance, explainability and accountability:

78% say decentralised digital identity will become central to fraud/AML
33% cite data privacy regulations (GDPR, CCPA) as the biggest external force shaping AML
25% point to criminals’ advancing use of AI and obfuscation techniques

The post Despite AI’s Rise, Fraud Teams Keep Growing — SEON 2026 Report appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Ashley McCulloch Vice President North America at Evoplay

Evoplay Names Ashley McCulloch Vice President North America

Published

4 days ago

March 4, 2026

Wladimir P.

evoplay-names-ashley-mcculloch-vice-president-north-america

Evoplay, the acclaimed game development studio, has named Ashley McCulloch as Vice President North America, strengthening its strategic emphasis on growth throughout the US and Canada.

McCulloch has over 15 years of experience that includes land-based, VLT, and online gaming. She has occupied high-level commercial positions at IGT and Light & Wonder and most recently worked as Director of Account Management North America at Inspired Gaming Group, where she led strategic account development and assisted with new market entry projects.

In addition to her commercial success, McCulloch serves as a board member for Women in Sports and Events, is part of Global Gaming Women, and was recognized in the 2024 Emerging Leaders in Gaming 40 Under 40, highlighting her influence in the industry.

At Evoplay, McCulloch will lead partnerships, regulatory licensing, product launches, and broader business development efforts as the provider speeds up its growth in the North American market.

Evoplay has secured a significant presence in the area, launching in Ontario via collaborations with prominent operators in the province, such as BetMGM and Caesars Entertainment.

In November 2025, Evoplay made a notable initial move into the United States by joining the lottery sector in Washington DC, establishing a connection to the US online gaming landscape.

With McCulloch’s hiring, the company aims to leverage this momentum and continue its expansion throughout regulated US states.

Ivan Kravchuk, CEO at Evoplay, said: “North America represents one of the most exciting growth opportunities for Evoplay, and Ashley McCulloch’s appointment is a major step forward in realising our ambitions in the region.

“Her extensive experience across land-based and online gaming, combined with her track record in commercial strategy, makes her the ideal person to lead our efforts as we scale.”

Ashley McCulloch, Vice President North America at Evoplay, added: “I’m very excited to be joining the Evoplay team at such a pivotal moment in its growth journey.

“The studio has built a strong reputation for high-quality content, and I look forward to developing partnerships and driving sustainable growth across North America.”

The post Evoplay Names Ashley McCulloch Vice President North America appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Africa

VeliGames Secures SiGMA Africa’s Industry Rising Star Award

Published

4 days ago

March 4, 2026

Wladimir P.

veligames-secures-sigma-africa’s-industry-rising-star-award

VeliGames, a game aggregation platform from VeliTech, has received the Industry Rising Star award at the SiGMA Africa 2026 Awards, highlighting the platform’s swift innovation and significant influence on African iGaming.

The Industry Rising Star award highlights a developing company that displays remarkable potential, creativity, and influence, rapidly positioning itself as a forthcoming leader in the iGaming sector. It emphasizes VeliGames’ dedication to providing not just a content pipeline, but also genuine innovation and a comprehensive growth engine for operators in developing markets.

“Winning the SiGMA Africa Award for Industry Rising Star 2026 is a proud moment for our team. From day one, we built VeliGames with African operators in mind, combining local-fit content, practical tooling, and pricing that makes sense on the ground. We back it all up with hands-on operational know-how from working in the region. That’s what being a true content partner looks like.” Irakli Kakhidze, CEO at VeliGames.

Tailored for Africa’s infrastructure challenges, device characteristics, and user habits, VeliGames provides a performance-oriented casino content layer aimed at thriving in areas where conventional, high-bandwidth aggregation methods struggle. Rather than solely competing based on catalogue size, VeliGames prioritizes the key factors that genuinely contribute to casino success in Africa: speed, accessibility, conversion, and session stability.

The platform delivers content in a highly efficient, mobile-centric setting designed to function dependably amid variable connectivity, restricted device storage, and brief gaming sessions, assisting operators in ensuring seamless gameplay and enhanced player experiences on a larger scale.

Alongside curated third-party titles, the platform includes exclusive in-house content:

VeliPlay: bold, crash-and-fast titles built for immersion, retention, and high replay value
Heaven of 7: high-impact slot content designed for strong engagement, session after session

Visit VeliTech at Stand 096 from March 3-5 to learn why VeliGames was honored as the Industry Rising Star. Discover live game demonstrations, witness performance features in action, and learn how operators can create unique iGaming brands with a platform designed for regional requirements.

The post VeliGames Secures SiGMA Africa’s Industry Rising Star Award appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.