ZenSports has received its non-restricted gaming license from the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) and will soon bring its brand of sports betting to the state as it looks for expansion opportunities.
The license allows ZenSports to operate its sports betting platform at the Lovelock, Nevada-based Big Wheel Casino, pending final technical certification, according to a news release. ZenSports is exercising its option for the Big Wheel Casino that it had obtained from Strategic Gaming Management in July 2020.
It also will take over the sportsbook at Baldini’s within the casino and the company will pursue additional sports betting locations and expand ZenSports throughout the Nevada gambling industry.
“This is an absolutely huge milestone for ZenSports and the state of Nevada,” Mark Thomas, ZenSports co-founder and chief executive officer, said in the release. “It’s not easy to get licensed in Nevada, and Nevada is the gold standard for licensing throughout the world. ZenSports and its key employees, including myself, just went through the most rigorous set of investigations that exists out there.
”This puts us in a great position to be able to get licensed in other states throughout the U.S. as we grow and expand. It’s also a huge win for the state of Nevada because they’re getting an innovative, hard-working company that is looking to grow and become an integral part of the Nevada gaming ecosystem for many years to come.”
Peer-to-Peer Next?
ZenSports will operate as a traditional sportsbook in Nevada, but the company also offers “a peer-to-peer sports betting marketplace,” according to its website. This type of peer “exchange” allows bettors in legal sports wagering markets to come up with and accept bets that don’t need bookmakers’ odds and terms. The company said it would seek approval for its peer-to-peer and cryptocurrency features in early 2022.
“We wanted to get into the Nevada market as soon as possible and not wait for additional approvals of our peer-to-peer and cryptocurrency features,” Thomas said in the release. “Even just our sportsbook and fiat solutions offer a better user experience and performance than our competitors, so we’re confident we can win on those features alone.
“And then once our peer-to-peer and cryptocurrency features are approved in Nevada, which we expect in early 2022, then it will be all the more rewarding for our Nevada customers to have the best sports betting experience possible.”
ZenSports Eyeing More States
ZenSports has also applied for licenses in the Tennessee sports betting and Virginia sports betting markets. Currently, there is no peer-to-peer wagering in the U.S, but Tennessee Lottery officials have determined that peer-to-peer is legal under the state’s Sports Gaming Act.
A new Central City casino that could open in Colorado this year signed a 15-year deal with ZenSports for sports betting in February. The Colorado sports betting market launched in May 2020 and has been one of the strongest in the U.S.
The company’s strategy is to focus and expand within the U.S.
“As a fast-growing startup, it’s important to have laser-focus,” Thomas said in the release. “The U.S. market is clearly the biggest opportunity for growth, and we want to ensure that we have the utmost focus on executing on that strategy. If and when we re-enter the international market in the future, we’ll focus on locations that have equally high opportunities.”
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First published on: Gambling.com
