As I sit here and reflect on my time last week at WGES in Barcelona, I am still pleasantly surprised at how much of the conference agenda was dedicated to Blockchain (in particular the second day) and at the number of senior-level attendees who were interested in learning more about it.

I’m no stranger to conducting interviews on crypto currencies and Blockchain at gambling events specifically, however the subject matter has changed drastically over the past five, six years.  Discussions that used to exclusively revolve around using crypto currencies to get money in and out of gambling sites have shifted to discussions surrounding how to use Blockchain technology to address pain points such as KYC and raise money for start-ups.

During WGES I moderated a crypto-focused panel, “The future of crypto currency in the gambling industry” and learned a lot while preparing with my panelists prior to show-time. We all remembered the days of Jon Matonis talking about operators gaining a “competitive wedge” when accepting crypto currencies for deposits and withdrawals.  My panelist Eric Benz talked on his days of educating gambling companies and affiliates on crypto currencies and why they should accept them as payment.

This year at WGES however, CEOs and other senior level professionals wanted to hear how Blockchain technology can improve the functionality of their back-ends, as opposed to why they should accept crypto as payment.  On top of this, lets not forget most operators are still under the impression its too early to commit to Blockchain powered projects with full speed ahead.