As the SBC Summit wrapped up its latest edition in Lisbon, which saw a 70% increase in attendance compared to 2023, Comtrade Gaming's Chief Commercial Officer Steven Valentine spoke to Yogonet at the show about the company’s plans and the growing opportunities in Brazil and other Latin American markets.
How has the SBC Summit gone for Comtrade Gaming? Has it met your expectations?
It’s been a great show for us! We’ve seen significant growth this year, which has been encouraging. Earlier in the year we launched our new games division, and that's been a really good development for us. What SBC allows is to meet potential partners from a variety of regions. Brazil is a key market for us at the moment, so having visitors from that country at the show has been particularly valuable.
What were the main inquiries from visitors to your stand?
Our main focus is on platform technology and games. This time around, we've had many conversations about finding the right technology solutions for Brazil, especially given the country’s recent regulatory developments and the interest this has sparked. So I would say that platforms and regulation have been two major topics.
But our gaming division is another exciting development and was also a highlight at the show. We launched it earlier this year, in February, and we've now ramped up the number of games in our portfolio. We are now going live with operators, gaining some real traction in the market.
We know this is a process that takes its time, but we have already started to see the benefits of launching the division. The games are a really exciting part of our business, and they have been a highlight at shows. They're something people can interact with directly, as they are at the front, while platforms tend to work behind the scenes.
Yogonet was present at the division's launch at ICE London, in February. Now we are approaching the year's end. What are your main takeaways from these first few months?
We have been extremely busy, ramping up our games sales team and our games development team. But the plus is that it has worked out really well. The company has grown now, and we have more than 350 people — quite a big business!
However, we also stay active on the platform side, providing our clients with the solutions they are looking for. We have a lot of large, long-term clients who are quite demanding, so we're always having to deliver them what they need to grow. All in all, I would say we've been busy building our offering, and waiting for the Brazil market to open.
It seems Brazil is a hot topic for the company.
I would say Brazil is a hot topic not only for us but the entire gaming industry. There are a lot of very good operators in Brazil who have very bad or poor technology. And now, because of the regulation, you're getting brands from Europe or other more established markets moving into Brazil, seeking to compete with really good technology. For that reason, the local operators in Brazil will have to catch up on the technology side — and I think that's where we can play a big part.
What's your take on the regulatory process?
While the regulations are relatively light, and the tax rate is fine, taxing player winnings is a unique challenge. Most markets don't normally do that, so we’ll see how players react to that. That'll be an interesting one to watch.
But overall, the regulatory approach seems sensible, especially when compared to some markets where the tax is too heavy. I think they've done it quite well and hopefully, it continues that way. It could become a model for other South American countries.
We are definitely turning our attention to the LatAm region a lot more. We are actually in the process of recruiting native speakers, which is going to be key in those markets.
On the games front, we have seen the company's titles go live with operators such as Mansion and Spinbet over the last few months. How has the reception been thus far?
The response has been fantastic. Our games have performed very well. What helps is that we already have an existing relationship with those clients on the platform side, so we can get a nice position on the page, which obviously helps a lot.
What we need to do now is ramp up the number of games. At the moment, we are releasing one game a month — we need to double that. So that's a goal for the start of the next year. We focus on quality, but we also need to increase the quantity.
Are there any significant licensing milestones coming up?
We’ve just secured a license in Malta, and the UK is next in the pipeline, along with Romania. Brazil is also on the horizon as we expand our presence.
We are a company that always has shown good, steady growth. We don't expand at a rate that affects our clients. They don't suffer because we're concentrating on new operators. The key is manageable expansion.
As we approach the year’s end, what are some key projects on the horizon for Comtrade?
A major focus is getting our first platform client live in Brazil by the end of the year. We actually shook hands on that first platform deal for Brazil at the show, which is a big step forward for us, setting the stage for what's to come in 2025.