FEATURE: Martin Lycka – The science of compliance

Martin Lycka – Director of Regulatory Affairs, GVC Holdings/Ladbrokes Coral – explains how gaming operators should prepare for SCA.

Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) has been causing a stir in the business world for the best part of the year – and the gaming industry isn’t exempt from this regulatory pressure. Prior to his speech at PayExpo 2019, Martin Lycka, Director of Regulatory Affairs, GVC Holdings/Ladbrokes Coral, spoke to GIO about what to expect in the gaming/betting industry as SCA beds in, and how the gaming companies can prepare.

GIO: How do you think the implementation of SCA will affect the gaming industry?

MLY: The gambling industry started implementing SCA strategies some time ago; the process will have further sped up with the implementation of PSD2. SCA presents us with another opportunity to further enhance the levels of consumer protection we offer our customers.

GIO: What do sports betting/gaming organisations need to do to best prepare for the changes?

MLY: Just like with any regulatory or compliance change, the industry needs to first ascertain what the changes are and what they entail and, subsequently – usually together with the relevant third party suppliers – find the most efficient way to implement the changes without disrupting the existing customer experience.

GIO: Will we see a decline in bets (e.g. fewer impulse bets, as the slower process gives people more time to assess their actions)?

MLY: This is yet to be seen; in general though, anything contributing towards safer betting is most welcome by GVC and the industry.

GIO: What will be the most positive impact(s) of the new regulation on the industry?

MLY: As mentioned above, in my view the key positive impact is an opportunity for the industry to further shore up the protection tools it offers to its customers, in this case in terms of data protection and IT security. In general, PSD2 will have widened the scope of payment methods available to the industry and ultimately the customers, including very modern unique payment methods.

GIO: What will the betting landscape look like 6 months down the line from the implementation of SCA?

MLY: Considering that the industry has already to some extent been going down the SCA route, there may not be that many visible changes. As I’ve already mentioned though, SCA will have enabled us to offer an even safer environment for our customers, which will help us in our quest to supply entertaining and at the same time secure product.

GIO: What role will SCA play in the GVC Changing for the Bettor mission, and future plans for safer betting?

MLY: In compliance with GDPR and PSD2, SCA should have the ability to provide us with additional insight into customer behaviour in certain situations, for example those you have outlined in your third question; this behavioural data can subsequently be reflected, on an anonymised basis, in our RG related research or the RG research we support, and ultimately in our products with a view to further enhancing the seamlessness of our RG processes.

To find out more about the PayExpo conference, visit: www.payexpo.com.