Latest News

TrueLayer launches European payments combining instant player deposits and withdrawals

Published

4 years ago

April 12, 2022

George Miller

Reading Time: 3 minutes

iGaming operators can accept instant, account-to-account payments and instant withdrawals in any app or website, delivering the most comprehensive European payments experience.
Jack Potts Bingo in Ireland is already live using the product with Spanish operator Codere going live in the coming weeks.

Payments with TrueLayer are lower cost and lower fraud than traditional payment options including cards, manual bank transfer and digital wallets.

TrueLayer, Europe’s leading open banking platform, today announced it has launched its closed-loop payment product across Europe, including Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Lithuania and the Netherlands. iGaming operators can now offer secure, instant and cost-effective deposits and withdrawals across the continent.

Traditional payment methods weren’t built to handle the speed of online commerce. With cards taking up to three days to settle, operators struggle to manage liquidity, while players have to wait in limbo for withdrawals. Cards and digital wallets generate substantial costs through interchange fees, chargeback penalties and time-consuming manual tracking processes. There is also the issue of rising card fraud in Europe, which totalled €1.55 billion in 2020, with card-not-present fraud accounting for 76% of those cases. France, Germany and Spain all ranked in the top five for card fraud losses.

TrueLayer is addressing these points with a more cost-effective, frictionless and secure European payments platform for iGaming operators, built on open banking and the fastest available bank payment rails. It delivers:

Instant pay-ins: Players can top up their accounts in seconds with account-to-account payments. Deposits settle in a dedicated merchant account and are automatically reconciled against customers’ details.
Instant withdrawals: Verified account details are associated with each player allowing businesses to provide instant withdrawals and refunds back into the same account used for the deposit with a simple API call.
Dedicated merchant accounts: Operators can automate reconciliation processes and gain full visibility of their player’s account details as soon as payment settles. They can also withdraw automatically into their bank account.

Roberto Villani, Head of iGaming at TrueLayer, commented: “With TrueLayer, iGaming operators across Europe can create a better payment experience. A single implementation of our platform delivers immediate deposits so players can get started and instant withdrawals for their winnings. Card refunds can take up to five days, destroying customer loyalty in the process, while other methods are prone to operational inefficiencies, human error and lost payouts that can damage businesses’ reputations. With TrueLayer, players can see the instant transfer of funds with minimal fuss or having to chase support teams asking where their money is.”

Ran Kshivizky, Payments Product Manager at Codere, explained: ‘We want to deliver the best player experience possible and if you can pay instantly you should be able to get your funds out instantly. When you know you can access winnings quickly that is also a differentiator for Codere and is also likely to make players come back. TrueLayer provides the ideal solution as it’s money in and out straight away – without the poor UX and operational overheads of cards, manual transfers or wallets.”

TrueLayer Payments is the most comprehensive solution on the market, delivering significant benefits for operators and players, including:

Instant access to funds: payments are confirmed instantly, enabling operators to serve players more efficiently and receive funds faster. Real-time payment confirmation provides peace of mind that each transaction has been authorised.

Frictionless checkout processes: inputting card details is inconvenient for players and errors can derail the entire payment process. TrueLayer removes any manual entry on banking details, eliminating mistakes and making it easier to complete a payment.
Fewer abandoned payments: tested on millions of transactions across the UK and Europe, TrueLayer’s embedded payment flows make paying easier than ever. The result is fewer payment abandonments and higher conversion rates.
Lower operational costs: Open banking removes interchange fees and chargebacks of cards, making them far more cost-effective. TrueLayer automates expensive and time consuming manual processes such as reconciliation and sending payouts, with full visibility of all payments via the merchant dashboard.
Reduced payment fraud: Payments are PSD2 and SCA compliant, with payments authenticated directly with the bank, reducing the opportunity for fraud and chargebacks.
Enhanced player experience: Instant deposits enable operators to provide access to their services with the certainty they have received the funds and players to use their funds immediately. Instant withdrawals through TrueLayer provide an additional level of assurance that their money will be returned efficiently.

Till Wirth, Head of Product at TrueLayer, added:“We have used our experience and expertise to deliver an effortless way to onboard new customers and enable them to quickly fund their accounts and withdraw winnings, delivering faster, safer and lower cost payments for operators in the process. That, in turn, supports increased trust and loyalty – for example YouGov research showed 64% of players were more likely to trust an operator that offered instant withdrawals and deposits. More than half (55%) said they were likely to switch to a provider that offered instant withdrawals.”

Agganis Arena

RLCS Boston Major Becomes Most Watched Event in Rocket League History

Published

2 hours ago

February 25, 2026

Wladimir P.

rlcs-boston-major-becomes-most-watched-event-in-rocket-league-history

The Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS) Boston Major 2026 has officially become the most-watched event in Rocket League esports history, setting a new benchmark for global engagement and competitive excellence.

Held at Agganis Arena in Boston, the Major concluded with a thrilling all-French Grand Final, where Gentlemates defeated tournament favourites Team Vitality 4:2 to claim the first Major title of the 2026 season.

Record-Breaking Viewership Milestone

The RLCS Boston Major 2026 delivered unprecedented audience numbers:

Peak Viewers: 624,316 concurrent viewers
Average Viewership: Over 270,000 viewers
First RLCS event ever to surpass 600,000 concurrent viewers

This milestone represents a 33.3% increase over the previous all-time peak recorded at the 2022–23 RLCS World Championship, highlighting sustained year-over-year growth and expanding global interest in Rocket League esports.

The event’s performance reinforces RLCS as one of the fastest-growing competitive circuits in modern esports.

A Grand Final Worthy of the Record

The Boston Major culminated in a high-stakes French showdown between Gentlemates and Team Vitality. The 4:2 victory secured Gentlemates’ first Major trophy of the season and signaled a shift in competitive power dynamics heading deeper into 2026.

The all-French final further amplified international audience engagement, particularly across European broadcast markets, contributing significantly to the event’s record-breaking concurrent viewership.

Global Broadcast Reach and Multi-Language Coverage

Beyond peak numbers, the Boston Major showcased:

Multi-language broadcast streams
Cross-platform digital distribution
Strong in-arena attendance
Expanded regional fan engagement

Hosted in front of thousands of live fans at Agganis Arena, the event combined traditional arena esports spectacle with robust online streaming performance — a formula that continues to fuel RLCS’s accelerating global momentum.

What This Means for Rocket League Esports

The 2026 Boston Major marks a defining moment for the RLCS ecosystem:

Sustained Global Growth – The consistent upward trend in viewership confirms Rocket League’s staying power within the esports landscape.
Mainstream Momentum – Breaking the 600K peak threshold positions RLCS among elite-tier esports events globally.
Competitive Depth – The diversity and intensity of international competition continue to elevate the broadcast product.
Commercial Validation – Record audience metrics strengthen sponsorship, media rights, and long-term circuit investment potential.

As the 2026 season progresses, the Boston Major sets a new performance benchmark that future Majors and the World Championship will aim to surpass.

The post RLCS Boston Major Becomes Most Watched Event in Rocket League History appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Competitive Poker

David Lappin Named PokerStars Ambassador

Published

2 hours ago

February 25, 2026

Wladimir P.

david-lappin-named-pokerstars-ambassador

PokerStars has officially named Irish poker professional David Lappin as the winner of its inaugural Live League ambassadorship, marking a major milestone for both the seasoned pro and the global poker brand. The announcement follows the conclusion of the 2025 PokerStars Live League season, where players competed across European events for leaderboard supremacy and a coveted ambassador position.

Lappin, widely respected as a poker player, writer, commentator, and industry voice, now joins the prestigious PokerStars ambassador roster after emerging as the standout candidate among top leaderboard performers.

A Season-Long Path to Representation

The 2025 PokerStars Live League introduced a structured, merit-based pathway for players to earn ambassador status. Competitors accumulated points across three buy-in-based leaderboard tiers — High, Medium, and Low — throughout major European live events.

Qualifying tournaments included stops on the renowned European Poker Tour (EPT), regional PokerStars Open events, and even the iconic Irish Poker Open, a long-standing highlight of the European poker calendar.

At the end of the season:

Top 30 players (Top 10 per tier) earned the right to audition.
A PokerStars judging panel selected the ultimate ambassador.
Lappin was chosen for his consistency, credibility, and player-first approach.

This structure reflects PokerStars’ growing emphasis on meritocracy and community representation rather than purely promotional appointments.

Player-Led Representation at the Core

As a PokerStars Ambassador, Lappin’s role extends beyond brand visibility. His focus will center on:

Competing in flagship EPT Main Events
Participating in PokerStars Open stops
Promoting online-to-live qualification routes
Engaging directly with the player community

PokerStars has made clear that this ambassadorship is rooted in authentic player representation. Lappin has long advocated that ambassadors should serve as bridges between operators and players — not simply brand spokespeople.

His reputation as a thoughtful commentator and outspoken industry analyst positions him as a natural intermediary between grassroots competitors and event organizers.

Cédric Billot, Associate Director of Live Events Operations at PokerStars, emphasized Lappin’s longstanding presence on the circuit and deep understanding of the live ecosystem. According to Billot, Lappin’s authenticity and alignment with PokerStars values made him a “natural fit” for the role.

Strengthening the Online-to-Live Pathway

A key component of Lappin’s ambassadorship will be highlighting PokerStars’ satellite ecosystem — a system allowing online players to qualify for major live tournaments at a fraction of the standard buy-in.

This online-to-live funnel remains central to PokerStars’ brand identity. By promoting satellite qualifiers and digital routes into live events, Lappin reinforces PokerStars’ commitment to accessibility and upward mobility within competitive poker.

For aspiring players, this messaging underscores an important truth: online grinders can convert modest investments into major live opportunities.

The 2026 PokerStars Live League Expansion

The announcement coincides with the launch of the 2026 PokerStars Live League season, which began at PokerStars Open Campione.

Key highlights of the 2026 league include:

€157,500 in PokerStars LIVE credits awarded
Prizes distributed across High, Medium, and Low tiers
A new €100,000 live freeroll at the first EPT stop of 2027
Expanded rewards structure benefiting top 30 finishers in each tier

The second stop of the 2026 season is currently underway at EPT Paris, offering players additional opportunities to earn leaderboard points.

League standings and live updates are available through the PokerStars Live app, further integrating digital tracking with live competition.

Strategic Implications for PokerStars

Lappin’s appointment reflects broader strategic shifts in the live poker landscape:

Community Credibility Over Celebrity Marketing
PokerStars continues prioritizing ambassadors with deep player roots rather than purely mainstream appeal.
Reinforcing European Live Dominance
By strengthening the Live League and EPT ecosystem, PokerStars consolidates its hold on Europe’s premier live poker circuits.
Retention Through Gamification
The leaderboard structure encourages year-long engagement, incentivizing consistent participation rather than one-off tournament attendance.
Expanding Reward Distribution
The 2026 freeroll addition broadens prize accessibility, rewarding loyalty across all buy-in levels.

Why This Matters for the Poker Industry

The poker industry has increasingly leaned into hybrid engagement models — combining online platforms, live tours, community ambassadors, and digital content ecosystems.

Lappin’s appointment symbolizes this evolution. As a hybrid figure — competitor, analyst, content creator — he embodies the modern poker ambassador archetype: credible, vocal, accessible, and community-oriented.

The Live League format itself may also influence competitor operators to rethink how ambassador programs are structured, shifting toward performance-based selection models.

The post David Lappin Named PokerStars Ambassador appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Latest News

Plaza Hotel & Casino debuts the only live streaming service in Las Vegas to broadcast the excitement of its smoke free gaming area

Published

2 hours ago

February 25, 2026

GamingAmericas.com

plaza-hotel-&-casino-debuts-the-only-live-streaming-service-in-las-vegas-to-broadcast-the-excitement-of-its-smoke-free-gaming-area

Three table games also added to the first and only smoke free gaming space in downtown Las Vegas

To highlight the excitement of its smoke free gaming area, the first and only one in downtown Las Vegas, the Plaza Hotel & Casino has partnered with Vegas Live Casino Network to launch the only live streaming channel dedicated to broadcasting casino play in Las Vegas, seven days a week.

The Plaza has long promoted social media posting by guests and created the smoke free gaming area as a social media friendly space with vibrant backdrops and copyright free music. Now, the Plaza is partnering with Vegas Live Casino Network to be the first Las Vegas property with its own dedicated YouTube channel to broadcast the excitement players are having in its smoke free gaming space at https://www.youtube.com/@VegasLiveCasinoNetwork.

Thanks to the new broadcast stream from Vegas Live Casino Network, guests will be able to subscribe and share the video stream of themselves playing the slots machines or the new table games with friends and family to show the fun they are having at the Plaza.

The broadcast will stream live Sunday through Thursday from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays from 6 p.m. to midnight. To learn more about the live streaming service, watch the launch video for the Vegas Live Casino Network at the Plaza at: youtube.com/watch?v=PfboeigVH_c.

The smoke free gaming space is home to dozens of the industry’s most popular slot machines, and now, the Plaza also added three table games, including blackjack, baccarat, and European roulette. Blackjack will offer bets starting at $25 to $2,000; baccarat will start bets at $25 up to $3,000; and European roulette will be a $200 progressive table. Outside bets: even money is $3,000 maximum and 2-1 is $1,500 maximum bet. The table games will be open from 6 p.m. to midnight daily.

To learn more about the new offerings in the Plaza’s smoke free gaming area visit: plazahotelcasino.com/casino/smoke-free-slots/.

The post Plaza Hotel & Casino debuts the only live streaming service in Las Vegas to broadcast the excitement of its smoke free gaming area appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.